The Warrior of the Light
by mineng101
Summary: Another Gohan goes to high school fic. Smart and confident Gohan. Starts shortly after the end of the Cell games and follows Gohan as he follows a different path to self forgiveness and growth.
1. Chapter 1

**I do not own Dragonball Z or any of its characters. I am only twisting them to fit my little world.**

 **I do not own The Manual of the Warrior of the Light by Paulo Coelho**

 **Please don't feed the plot bunnies.**

 **Welcome to my newest story. It has been plaguing me for some time now, and I finally decided to do something with it. This will be another Gohan goes to high school fic, and I know that there are thousands of those out there, so original ideas are becoming scarce, but I will do my best to find another angle.**

"Gohan, you did great. I'm proud of you, my son. You have grown so strong, there isn't anything else I can teach you. Please take care of your mother. I leave the Earth in your hands."

"No! Dad! I can't do this without you! There is still so much you haven't taught me! Dad, I need you! Dad!"

"Dad!" Gohan shouted sitting up in his bed. Realizing that he had been dreaming, the young demi-saiyan slowly ran his hand down his face. Looking down, he saw the end of the long scar that ran down the length of his left arm. When Dende healed his arm, he specifically asked for him to leave the scar. It was to serve as a visual reminder of the price of his arrogance. Clenching his fist, Gohan got out of his bed and slipped into his gi. Exiting out his window so as to not disturb his mother, Gohan flew to the nearby clearing that he and his father used to use for training. It had been less than a week since the end of the Cell Games, and his father's decision to stay in the otherworld, and Gohan had finally set his mind. His father had entrusted the protection of the Earth to him, and he was determined to not be a disappointment any more.

The sun had yet to rise, wisps of fog covered the field, and Gohan was going through his warm up exercises. Gohan was going through the basic katas he knew as he recalled his fight with Cell: the destruction of Android 16, the attack of the Cell juniors, his father's sacrifice, Trunks' death; it was all due to his inability to do what was needed of him. His whole life had been one incident after another where he had failed in one way or another. No more, he would not fail those important to him again.

Little did Gohan realize, but his movements had been increasing in speed and intensity and his energy output had skyrocketed to the point that he was now in Super Saiyan form. He was moving so fast that each strike against his invisible enemies created a sonic boom. So blinded by his rage towards himself, he was close to ascending to to the next level.

Suddenly one of Gohan's punches was caught by a strong hand. His eyes coming back into focus, Gohan saw a large green hand holding his wrist. Looking past the hand, Gohan recognized his mentor and long time friend, Piccolo.

"Hey, Kid." Piccolo said, a look of concern on his face. Piccolo was just as shocked as everyone else when his one time rival turned comrade made his final decision and knew that Gohan was deeply troubled by all that had happened. He had been meditating up at the lookout when he felt Gohan's energy spike. From his vantage point, he could see that the boy was running on auto-pilot, lost in his own mind while his body acted on its own, running through all the training that had been forced upon it. He was just going to watch to make sure the kid didn't hurt himself, but knew he had to do something when he saw Gohan powering up to his Super Saiyan 2 transformation. There is no telling the amount of havoc that would cause if he accidentally let loose a ki blast in that state.

"Pi-Piccolo?" Gohan said, as if just seeing him for the first time in a long time.

"Yeah, Kid. It's me." Piccolo answered. "What's eating at you?"

Gohan looked away, ashamed of himself. "It's my fault." He stated morosely.

"What's your fault?" Piccolo asked, although he had a strong feeling he already knew what the preteen would say.

"Everything. Dad's death, Android 16's death, The world almost coming to an end." Gohan said, tears forming in his downturned eyes, trying hard to not let his voice waiver. "If I wouldn't have been so weak, if..if I wouldn't have allowed myself to be controlled by that power, they would still be alive. Android 16, he had a gentle soul. He loved nature so much. It was due to my own weakness and fear that he died."

"After 16's death, and my ascension, I was so overcome by rage and the feeling of power that I almost allowed the world to be destroyed. Dad had to sacrifice himself to clean up my mess. If I would have just finished Cell off when I had the chance, dad would not have had to die. He wouldn't have had to make the choice to not come back. Mom wouldn't have to cry herself to sleep every night." Gohan continued, tears running down his face.

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Chi-Chi woke up that morning determined to move on. She was devastated when she learned that Goku had died fighting against Cell. She felt her world shatter when Goku announce his decision to stay dead this time. She felt so abandoned and alone. Chi-Chi had been on autopilot for the past several days. This morning a fluttering sensation from her abdomen reminded her that she had to be strong, if not for her own sake, then for her children's.

Chi-Chi had discovered she was pregnant not too long before the arrival of the androids, but with all the turmoil since that day, she had not mentioned it to anyone yet.

Chi-Chi decided to check up on Gohan before she started on breakfast. She couldn't imagine what he was going through having actually being there for Goku's final moments. If he was anything like his father, which she knew he was, he was probably blaming himself.

*knock knock* "Gohan, honey, are you awake?" Chi-Chi slowly opened her son's door and she felt her heart stop. His room was empty. She quickly rushed around the house to see if he was possibly in another room, but there was no trace of her son anywhere. Suddenly, several loud booms in succession shook the house. Fearing the worst, Chi-Chi ran down the stairs and to the front door.

Running outside, Chi-Chi could see a golden glow a short distance into the woods in the early morning light. She knew that was where they would train, but the threat was over, why would he be out there training. He should be up in his room still recovering and resuming his studies.

Throwing her shoes on and grabbing her frying pan, Chi-Chi set off to bring her son home. She had just arrived at the edge of the clearing when she heard Gohan start to break down. She stood in shock hearing everything her precious little boy was saying. It broke her heart to hear that he blamed himself for everything that had happened. "It's not your fault." She whispered. She noticed Piccolo look right at her. She shook her head and slowly back away from the clearing. As she walked back to the house, she was trying to figure out how to help her son. Subconsciously she started to rub her belly. "Oh, Goku, Why did you have to leave? Your son needs you."

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It wasn't long after she had returned to the house when she heard Gohan enter his room through his window. A few minutes later, she heard him start down the stairs.

"Mom! Eh he, ummm…" Gohan was shocked to see Chi-Chi sitting on the sofa in the living room and wasn't sure what to say to her. He had hardly seen her since the end of the games, let alone spoken to her.

"Good morning, Gohan." Gohan could tell by the tone of her voice that she knew something. "Is there something you want to tell me?" Chi-Chi was trying to not be too stern on Gohan, but she needed to make sure he knew where his priorities should lay. She expected him to make an excuse or something, so she was not prepared when he looked up at her with an almost desperate look in his eyes.

"I-I was out training." Gohan admitted. "Da-dad…" He took a deep breath before continuing. "Dad made me promise...to take his place as Earth's protector...and-and to take care of you." Tears were streaming down his cheeks.

Chi-Chi was taken aback. 'Damn you, Goku. He is just a boy, my precious little boy. He can't protect the world, he has to grow up and be successful and get married and give us lots of grandbabies.' Chi-Chi wailed in her mind.

"Gohan, I won't allow it!" Chi-Chi yelled. "You were almost killed by that monster, Cell. I won't allow you to keep getting into danger like that. You are going to study your butt off and become a great scholar. I won't have my baby boy becoming a delinquent like your father and his friends! Now march your butt back up those stairs and get started on your studies."

Gohan glared at his mother for a moment. "Dad wasn't a delinquent, he was Earth's greatest warrior." He stated harshly before turning on his heel and stomping up the stairs. Chi-Chi watched him climb the stairs and waited till she heard the slam of his door before she collapsed on the sofa and started crying.

"Oh Goku…."

"Dad, why didn't you come back?" Gohan looked out his window to the morning

sky.

"Go-Gohan, honey, may I please come in?" Chi-Chi knocked gently on her son's door. She was afraid that he had fled out the window when she heard the door latch click. Slowly she entered the room and found Gohan was standing next to the window, silent tears streaking his face. She sat on his bed and patted next to her, inviting him to join her. He looked back out the window for a moment before moving to take a seat next to his mother. Suddenly he buried his face in her bosom and started to sob. Stroking his hair, Chi-Chi rocked her son gently. "I'm so sorry, Gohan. I miss him so much. I should not have said those things." Tears were flowing down her cheeks as well.

They sat that way until Gohan had cried himself back to sleep. Chi-Chi laid him down and covered him up and kissed him gently on the forehead before heading to start a late breakfast.

The smell of food cooking roused the young half saiyan a short time later. Walking down the stairs, he was greeted by his mother who forced a smile. He could see that it didn't reach her eyes, but he was relieved to see that she was up and about.

"Good morning, Gohan." Chi-Chi greeted her son. She tried to offer him a smile, and he offered a very similar smile in return. She knew she had to put up a strong front for him. "After breakfast, I want you to start back with your studies. You have a lot of catching up to do after all."

Gohan sighed in resignation. "Yes mom."

Chi-Chi looked on slightly worried as Gohan started to eat his breakfast with much less gusto than he would normally show. 'Yes, studying will be good for him, it'll take his mind off the memories that are bothering him.' Chi-Chi thought confidently. "Gohan,"

Gohan looked up at his mother. "Yes, mom?"

"Later today, if you feel up to it, I need you to go to town and get some supplies. Our pantry is starting to look a bit bare." Chi-Chi requested.

Gohan smiled slightly. "Sure, mom, I think I can handle that."

"Thank you, Gohan. I'll call the store after breakfast so they will have everything ready for you to pick up."

After eating his fill, Gohan showered and dressed in his purple gi and grabbed his mother's grocery list so he could confirm everything was accounted for. Gohan waved goodbye to his mom as he took off for the short flight to Chazki village.

Chi-Chi stood at the door watching him disappear into the distance, a soft smile on her face and her hand on her belly. It was just a very slight bulge indicating her pregnancy, not yet noticeable through her dress. She knew she would need to make the announcement soon, she was just afraid of how Gohan would take the news. She knew he would make a great big brother as long as his guilt didn't drive him away first.

Gohan closed his eyes and let a small smile grace his lips. He loved flying and the sense of freedom it brought, it was as though all his worries and concerns vanished for those few minutes. He allowed his mind to wander as the wind rustled through his hair. His good mood soured though as his mind drifted to memories of flying with his dad. Before he knew it he could see the outskirts of the small village.

Not wanting to cause a scene, Gohan landed in a clearing just outside the town and made his way to Mr Lao's store on foot.

Mr Lao was dusting a display when Gohan walked in the entrance. "Ah. Good day young man. Good to see you again. How may I help you?"

"Hello, Mr Lao. I'm here to pick up an order my mom called in a little while ago." Gohan said.

"Hmm.." Mr Lao looked over a list of orders he had received that morning. "Ah! Here we go." He ducked behind his counter and retrieved a capsule.

"I knew you'd be able to defeat that monster." Gohan was taken aback by his statement. In the days following the Cell Games, Mr Satan had been all over the news taking credit for Cell's defeat, so it came as a shock when Mr Lao have Gohan the credit he deserved. Gohan didn't have a chance to respond because another person just entered the store.

"GOHAN!" The young demi-saiyan barely had a chance to register his name being called out before he was tackled by a familiar figure. He started blushing furiously when he discovered a pair of lips locked onto his own.

"Oh my gosh! You're here! I knew you could beat Cell! That mean nasty lying Mr Satan says he beat Cell, but I know it was you! It had to be you, you're so cool and strong. It was you, right? What happened to your hair? I thought you had yellow hair, but now it's black. You look really cute with black hair." Lime gushed out rapid fire, seemingly without taking a breath. She had sat up and was straddling the poor boy's lap while beaming at him.

"Uh….." Gohan sent a pleading look at Mr Lao who just chuckled lightly.

"Lime, honey, I think you're overwhelming our guest." Mr Lao placed a hand on his granddaughter's shoulder gaining her attention.

Lime looked down and saw the blush on Gohan's cheeks. Following his gaze, she finally noticed the position they were currently in. In her excitement she failed to notice her skirt had bunched up, exposing her panties, which Gohan was trying hard to not stare at. "You-you-you...pervert!" Lime slapped Gohan hard across the face before jumping up, sticking her tongue out at him, and running away blushing.

'Oh my gosh, he saw my panties!' Lime thought embarrassed. She lifted her skirt to see which pair she was wearing today. White with a orange cat face on the front. 'Great, he'll think I'm just a little kid still.' She froze and slowly brought her fingers to her lips. She smiled as she remembered the feeling of his lips on hers. "Yes!" She cheered happily.

Gohan watched Lime quickly leave the room while he rubbed his smarting cheek. He shot a questioning look to Mr Lao, who just chuckled and shook his head while offering the confused boy a hand up. Gohan accepted and Mr Lao helped him up off the floor.

"You'll have to forgive her, she's a spirited child." Mr Lao smiled as he handed Gohan the capsules containing his mother's order.

Gohan paid for the supplies and turned to leave, but paused, looking as if he were having an internal debate. "Mr Lao?"

"Yes son?"

"I was..I mean, I remember Lime telling me that you once competed in the budokai...and I was wondering if you could teach me your style?" Gohan asked respectfully.

"Son, you just defeated Cell, I don't see how you could learn much from a old man like me." Mr Lao asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Sir, strength is not always enough, sometimes a battle comes down to skill and technique. I cannot always rely on my strength alone, there is always someone stronger out there. I want to learn other styles so I can be more versatile." Gohan explained.

Me Lao looked contemplative for a few moments. "I am not an easy teacher, are you sure you can handle it?"

Gohan chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "No offense, Sensei Lao, but I don't think you can be as tough as my first teacher." Mr Lao gave Gohan a skeptical look. "He taught me to access my ki by throwing me at a mountain, kind of a do or die situation." Gohan continued sheepishly.

Mr Lao blinked several times in disbelief, but recovered quickly, and coughed into his hand. "Very well, we'll start tomorrow morning. Be here at seven o'clock sharp."

"Hai! Yes sir! Thank you, Sensei." Gohan bowed to his new mentor.

"Go on, get out of here." Mr Lao chuckled. Gohan bowed again and pocketed the capsules he had been sent for and left the store.

Gohan landed at his house and walked in to find his mother sipping on a glass of tea and reading a book. "Hi mom, I'm back."

"Oh! Gohan, please set the capsules in the kitchen and get yourself a quick snack. I want you to get on your studies right after that." Chi-Chi directed.

"Hey, mom...I talked to Mr Lao today...and he agreed to help me with my training in the mornings." Gohan informed his mother.

"Training? Don't be silly, you're done with training. Cell has been defeated, now it's time for you to resume your studies. I'll allow you a little time to get out and stretch and get some fresh air, you won't have time for any training." Chi-Chi responded dismissively.

"Mom, I have to continue to train, I have to be ready for the next threat, and I still don't have full control over my new powers yet." Gohan argued.

"Let the others deal with any threats, that's not your concern anymore." Chi-Chi stated.

"What if they can't handle it, what if it is on the level Cell was on?" Gohan countered.

"But what about your dream to be a scholar?" Chi-Chi almost pleaded.

"That's your dream, mom." Gohan said sadly. Seeing the look on his mother's face, Gohan ran his hand down his face. "Look, mom, I know you just want the best for my future, but from the time I could recognize shapes and colors, you have immersed me in becoming a scholar, I've never had a say in the matter. Then came Radditz and the Saiyan attack, I was forced to learn how to fight. That was dad's wish, for me to become a fighter, just like him."

Gohan paused for a moment to gather his thoughts. "I failed dad at the Cell Games, and he died because of that. I have to do this, I have to be strong and protect the Earth in his place. It's my way of honoring his memory. But I want more than just that. I want to continue my studies. To make you proud of me, but also so I can discover my dream, and to find my own place in the world."

Another pause, Gohan could see tears in his mother's eyes, but she kept quiet so he could finish. "Please, allow me to balance training and my studies. I have already failed dad once, I don't want to fail anyone else again."

Chi-Chi was stunned. She had never heard her son speak so passionately about anything before. She had no idea he felt that way, and she felt bad that he had never had the chance to find his own dream. Moving to sit next to her son, she embraced him. "I am proud of you, and I know your father is too. Don't ever think that you are a disappointment. Okay, continue your training, but I want you to put as much effort into your studies as you do your training."

"Of course, thank you, mom. I love you." Gohan said, a few tears streaking his face.

"I love you too, Gohan."

With a renewed determination, Gohan returned to his room to resume his studies. He would find his place in this world. Looking at the study schedule Chi-Chi had made for him, he saw he was supposed to be working on theoretical physics. Opening the book to the section on the conversion of matter to energy, Gohan was struck by inspiration.

"Hey! Dad did say that the secret to Instant Transmission was turning your body into light. Maybe I can use this to learn and maybe improve on dad's technique." Thought out loud excitedly.

He grabbed a sheet of scratch paper and started working on some equations.

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Gohan arrived at Mr Lao's shop just before seven to find Lime sitting on the veranda weaving some wild flowers together. "Hey, Lime!" He greeted the young girl.

"Hey, Gohan! Did you come to play with me today?" Lime beamed.

"Well, truth is, I'm here to train with your grandfather. He agreed to teach me his fighting style." Gohan admitted. "But we can play for a bit before I go home."

Lime looked a little disappointed at first, but brightened up when he said he would make some time for her. "Great! I'll let gramps know you're here."

Mr Lao emerged from his shop wearing his gi and smiled at Gohan. "Good, right on time. Are you ready to get started?"

"Yes sir!" Gohan responded.

"Very good. We're going to start off with some stretches, then I want you to demonstrate what you already know. We'll go from there." Mr Lao directed. Gohan immediately began some warm-up stretches, followed by a series of katas, starting from the basics to the more advanced moves from Piccolo's Demon style and Master Roshi's Turtle style.

Mr Lao was impressed with his current level. For such a young man to have mastery over not just one style, but two was not very common at all. "Very impressive, you have a very solid foundation to build from. Let us begin your journey into Dragon style Kenpo."

A few hours later, Gohan met up with Lime and spent a couple of hours relaxing and playing with her. After lunch, more of a snack in Gohan's opinion, he excused himself stop he could return home and resume his studies.

Gohan decided to try to use Instant Transmission, so he closed his eyes and focused on finding his mother's ki. One he found it, he focused his energy inward as he pictured himself in his home. With a snapping sound, Gohan vanished from Chazki village.

"Gyah!" Gohan appeared in the top of a tree near his house. Unfortunately the branch he appeared on was not strong enough to hold his weight and promptly broke, sending the poor boy falling, hitting every branch on the way to the ground. Gohan got up and dusted himself off. "I think it still needs some work." He muttered to himself.

Gathering himself up, he went inside, kissed his mother on the cheek and for back to work. Chi-Chi watched him from the door for a few moments, pride in her son radiating from her as she touched her belly again. 'Gohan, you're going to make such a wonderful big brother.'

 **That's the end of Chapter 1. Let me know what you think. I'll try to update when I can, but with my other story along with beta reading, work, and family life, updates are going to be on an as time permits schedule. This fic will have Gohan pair up with Lime, Erasa, and Videl, though not at the same time. I will have a version of Saiyaman, but he will look and act different from canon. I am also not including Majin Buu, but I do have an idea for a villain in the works.**

 **The first few chapters are going to show life for Gohan in the seven years between the Cell arc and him starting high school. There will be some time skips to get to the main part of the story, but that will probably be a few chapters away.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry about the lack of updates. We are in the busiest time of year for work and that had severely limited my free time to write. Things are starting to slow down a bit, so hopefully I'll be able to dedicate more time to my stories. Thank you for your patience and enjoy the story.**

Gohan settled into a fairly simple routine over the next few weeks. Wake up, morning stretches and run through his katas, breakfast, over to Mr Lao's, home for lunch, hit the books till dinner, more studying, shower and bed. By keeping himself busy, he was able to keep himself from dwelling on his mistakes and failures.

Even though he was keeping himself busy, he couldn't help but notice that his mother was still struggling. She often wore a smile in front of her son, but he could tell it was forced. Lately she seemed more fatigued than usual. When he asked her about it, she waved off his concerns and told him she just wasn't sleeping well, but she was fine. Gohan offered to help with the chores, but Chi-Chi refused to let him, stating that he had enough on his plate with his training and his studies, and besides, keeping busy for her son allowed her to keep moving forward every day.

Gohan was up in his room contemplating a problem he had encountered while using the Instant Transmission technique. He had been practicing every day and was becoming very proficient with it. The first time he successfully used it he nearly gave his mother a heart attack, appearing right behind her as she prepared lunch. Now he was trying to figure out how to use it to transmit himself to a specific place without having to focus on a specific person. Gohan's face turned crimson as he remembered what happened this morning.

 **Flashback**

"I'm off, Mom! I'll be back in time for lunch!" Gohan called out as he rushed out the front door. Feeling confident in his Instant Transmission after a few successful attempts, he sought out Lime's ki to surprise her. He grinned as he pictured her face as he popped up near her. 'It'll serve her right for all the pranks she has pulled on me since I started training under Mr Lao.'

The first thing Gohan noticed when he reappeared was the stream of warm water hitting him in the back. As his eyes focused in the steamy atmosphere, Gohan thought he must have messed up again. Then he saw her. There, with her hands in her hair lathering shampoo, was a completely naked Lime. his eyes traveled down her exposed flesh and he noticed for the first time the curves that had started to develop on her young body. Her breasts were still small, no larger than a pair of peaches, perfect pink nipples dotting them. He saw a small patch of hair that had began growing where her legs joined, but it was still thin enough for him to see her womanly lips as soap ran down her body. After his eyes traveled all the way to her feet, they had nowhere else to go but back up. When his eyes finally returned to face level, he was met with a wide-eyed, blushing preteen.

"Gohan…" Lime started in a low, confused tone, which suddenly became a scream. "YOU PERVERT!"

Gohan wisely decided that now was the time to run, and quickly exited the shower and ran out of the bathroom with bottles of shampoo and bars of soap and other shower items being thrown at him. Rushing out of the house, Gohan collapsed panting next to a tree. As he caught his breath, visions of Lime caused a deep blush to form on his face. Mr Lao chose that moment to come from around the building to discover the source of the commotion.

"What's that matter, son? You are all flushed, are you feeling alright?" Mr Lao asked.

"I-I'm fine, sir. Umm, Mr Lao, do you mind if we skip our training for the day?" Gohan responded.

Mr Lao rubbed his beard for a moment in thought. "Well, you are progressing quite well, so, I suppose one day will not be a problem. What, may I ask, is your reason for missing training?"

"You have some nerve, Son Gohan! You better take responsibility, mister!" Lime yelled furiously as she stomped out of the house. Mr Lao looked between the two preteens confused as his granddaughter strode up to the nervous looking boy. "Come on, you are taking me out for breakfast!"

Mr Lao assumed a knowing look and walked away chuckling. 'Good luck, my boy. You're going to need it.'

-Line Break-

"So, where are we going?" Gohan asked a still blushing Lime.

"You are going to take me to West City so I can run some errands. Go ahead and call that cloud of yours." Lime stated, still obviously upset at Gohan for popping up in her shower.

Gohan scratched at the back of his neck nervously for a moment before he took a few steps away from Lime and cupped his hands around his mouth. "Nimbus!" A few minutes later a familiar yellow cloud swooped out the sky and stopped before the preteens. Gohan jumped up first and offered his hand to Lime, but she climbed up herself and plopped herself down facing away from Gohan. Gohan sighed and asked nimbus to take them to West City.

A majority of the flight was spent in silence as Gohan tried to figure out how to apologize to Lime, and the young girl pretended to ignore her companion.

"Look Lime, I'm…." Gohan started before he was interrupted.

"How could you?" Lime asked irritated. For the life of her, she just couldn't figure out how he had literally just appeared in the shower with her. She was more embarrassed by the fact that he had seen her naked more than anything, but she didn't want him to know that yet.

"What?" Gohan asked confused

"Don't 'What?' me mister, you know exactly what I am talking about."

"That was an accident, I promise. I had no idea you were bathing. I thought I could play a little prank on you and surprise you, that's it." Gohan confessed.

"But how did you do it? I would have noticed if you came in through the door. So how did you just appear like that?" Lime demanded, her curiosity overriding her embarrassment and anger.

"Oh, that. I just used Instant Transmission." Gohan answered with a smile as though that explained everything.

"And just what is instant transmission?" Lime all but demanded, her irritation returning.

"It's a special technique that allows you to instantly travel to another location. You focus on a person's ki and you can travel great distances in an instant. I've been working on it for the past month or so." Gohan said with pride in his voice.

"And you thought that it would be a good idea to use it to see me in the shower?" Lime deadpanned.

"No no no, I had no idea that you were in the shower!" Gohan denied waving his hands in front of him.

Lime stared at him for a few moments. "Fine, I'll forgive you this time, but if you ever do it again, I'll make you take responsibility." Gohan gave her a confused look, but decided to drop the subject for now since they were quickly approaching West City. Gohan had nimbus set them down just outside of the town so as to not seen flying on a magic cloud.

"Hey, while we're here, you mind if we stop off at my godmother's place? She'd be upset if she found out I was here and didn't stop by." Gohan asked scratching the back of his neck again.

"Sure, I don't see why not." Lime responded.

"Great! So where did you need to go?" Gohan asked.

"I need to go by the mall and get some things that I can't make at home." Lime answered. Grabbing the boy's hand, Lime started dragging Gohan toward the public transit center to get a ride to the mall. "This way!" Lime dragged Gohan down a dark alley trying to find a shortcut to the transit center.

"What do we have here?" A gruff sounding voice asked. Suddenly a group of older teens and young adults surrounded Gohan and Lime. Several held knives, but most were carrying lengths of pipe or other blunt weapons.

Gohan instinctively put himself in between Lime and the delinquent that had addressed them. "We're not looking for any trouble. Just let us pass and no one has to get hurt." Gohan stated while carefully feeling their power levels. He knew he could take out the whole gang easily enough, but didn't want to put Lime in any unnecessary danger.

"Haha! You hear that boys? He thinks they can trespass on Black Dragon territory without paying any toll." The apparent leader laughed, eliciting malicious chuckles from the other gang members. Leering at Lime, the boss licked his lips. "She would make a fine addition to our little establishment. I knew of a few customers that would pay extra for a sweet young thing like that." Gohan's eyes narrowed at his insinuation. Lime, however, was not so closed mouth.

"If you think I'll just go with you asshats, you have another thing coming. I would sooner die than work for you!"

"Hehe, that's funny. You think you have a choice in the matter. Alright boys, grab the girl and kill her little boyfriend." The boss ordered. Suddenly a strong wind blew through the alley. Everybody turned toward Gohan, who was surrounded by a white aura that would occasionally flicker a bright yellow gold.

Gohan was beyond pissed. He had just saved the world, and for what? So some two-bit piece of scum to abduct girls and force them into a life worse than death? What's worse is this asshat was thinking he could just take his only friend that was his age and force _her_ into that life. His saiyan genes were screaming for blood, and it was taking all his willpower to not just give in and slaughter the whole gang where they stood.

Lime felt a stab of fear as she watched her best friend try and keep his calm. She wasn't afraid of what he might do, but what his actions would do to him. She didn't want him to lose his warm kindness or his pure heart. She knew that he was still dealing with the after-effects of the Cell Games, and so she reached out and pulled lightly at Gohan's shirt.

Gohan felt the light tug and was quickly able to reign in his baser instincts. He flashed her a quick smile to let her know that he was still himself and then refocused on the task at hand.

The gang leader took an involuntary step back when teal eyes met his. This wasn't how it was supposed to go down. They were supposed to be cowering in fear, pleading for their safety. the leader's confidence was further shaken when Gohan spoke.

"I hate to admit it, but I'm going to enjoy this far more than I should." The demi-saiyan seemed to phase out of sight. The gang members all started looking everywhere trying to find the boy they had thought would be an easy target. A shout was heard from the end of the alley as the body of the lookout crashed into another thug, knocking both men out. Gohan suddenly appeared in the midst of a small group, and with a single punch out kick to each one sent more bodies crashing into their buddies.

"Stop!" Gohan turned abruptly after sending one of the last thugs sailing into the side of a dumpster. All that was left of the gang were the leader, who was shaking in terror, and one thug that had been slammed into by one of his compatriots but had not been knocked out. He was currently holding Lime by the hair with a gun to her head. "That's right. You better behave, or else your little girlfriend will have a little accident."

Gohan charged a ki ball behind his back, waiting for the right moment when Lime made a move of her own. She stomped on the thug's foot making him loosen his grip, then she threw her head back breaking his nose with a wet crunch. Now free, Lime spun to face her attacker.

"You bitch!" He yelled holding his bleeding nose with one hand and aiming his gun with the other. Lime stepped in close and knocked the gun to the side and brought her knee up between his legs causing even Gohan to wince in imagined pain from the blow. As the thug started to fall forward, Lime grabbed the back of his head and drove her knee into his face, knocking a few teeth loose and knocking him out.

'Damn, remind me to never make her really mad.' Gohan thought to himself as he looked at her handiwork. Both Gohan and Lime turned their attention to the boss just in time to see him sprinting down the alley in a desperate attempt to escape. Gohan sped past him and delivered a punishing clothesline, causing the retreating thug to do a complete flip, knocking him out on impact. Satisfied none of the gang members were going anywhere, Gohan and Lime placed an anonymous call to the police to have them picked up.

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. After a bit of shopping, they had lunch and stopped by a small park to sit for a bit.

"I can't believe you got us banned from Liu Kang's." Lime giggled.

"Hey!" Gohan defended himself. "They should not say all you can eat if they don't really mean it."

Lime cuddled in close to Gohan's side and smiled. "Thanks for spending the day with me. I've had a great time." Lime said happily.

"I had a good time too, Lime. Maybe….maybe we could do it again sometime." Gohan offered nervously.

Lime sighed happily. "I'd like that."

Noting the darkening sky, Gohan reluctantly stood up and stretched. "We'd better get you home, it's getting late. My mom is probably already freaking out." taking a hold of Lime's hand, causing both preteens to blush, Gohan focused on Mr Lao's energy and used Instant Transmission to instantly arrive back in Chazki village right in front of a surprised Mr Lao.

Lime blinked in confusion a few times as her mind tried to catch up with what just happened. Turning to a sheepishly smiling Gohan, she punched him hard in the shoulder. "How about a little warning next time, jerk."

"Hehe, sorry Lime. It was just the fastest way to to get you home. Well, I gotta go, see you later, Lime. Bye Mr Lao!" Gohan flickered out of sight.

"That boy is always full of surprises." Mr Lao said returning to chopping firewood.

 **««««Flashback End»»»»»**

As Gohan recalled the day, he also remembered the epic ass chewing he received from his mother with liberal use of the infamous frying pan for being so late in getting home. He lay down on his bed and thought about the issues with transmitting to a location.

He knew it could only be to places he had been previously, but what about obstacles? What if his target location is not how he remembered it? Maybe he could discuss his thoughts with Bulma. Perhaps she could come up with an angle he hadn't thought of.

The next morning, Gohan planned on visiting Capsule Corp after his morning training. 'I wonder if Lime would like to come with me?' Gohan thought idly as he prepared for the day. Going down stairs, Gohan entered the kitchen just in time to see his mom, who had been preparing breakfast, sway momentarily before collapsing on the kitchen floor.

"Mom!" Gohan called out as he rushed to her side. He placed his hand on her forehead and almost jerked away with how hot she felt. He closed his eyes and focused, trying to get a read on her ki. He was shocked at how weak it felt but was rocked to his core when he detected a second ki within her. This second ki was extremely strong and felt reminiscent of his father's. He was going to be a big brother! Gohan was beside himself with excitement. Why hadn't his mother said anything? Surely she was aware that she was pregnant. Suddenly his excitement was doused with a cold dose of reality, his little sibling would have to live with never knowing their father, and it was his fault. Chi-Chi moaned uncomfortably snapping Gohan out of his darker thoughts. He had to get help for his mother. Picking her up bridal style, he searched for a familiar energy and hoped he was not too late as he phased out of sight.

 **Line Break**

"Woman! We are out of canned beverages!" Vegeta bellowed from the theater room. He was slouched in a recliner watching a soap opera wearing just his saiyan pants.

"Vegeta!" Bulma yelled as she stormed through the door. "I have a name! And it's not "Woman"!"

"Don't back talk me, woman! Go to the store and get me more of the silver can beverages." Vegeta demanded.

"Why don't you go yourself? Oh, wait. That's right! You got yourself banned from the store for disorderly conduct!" Bulma countered. "I don't have time to go to the store right now, so you'll just have to wait."

Before Vegeta could open his mouth to order her again, Gohan appeared between them with Chi-Chi still in his arms.

"Gohan?"

"Kakkabrat?"

"Bulma, mom collapsed in the kitchen and has a fever." Gohan relayed. Bulma took a quick look at Chi-Chi and told Gohan to take her to a nearby bedroom. Gohan lay his mother on the bed then told Bulma what he knew.

"Great, the Harpy is carrying Kakkabrat number two." Vegeta grumbled from the door before heading back to the theater room.

"What's with him?" Gohan asked watching the prince of saiyans walk away.

"He's been like that since the Cell Games. Ever since Goku refused to come back, all he has done is mope around, drink beer, and watch those stupid soap operas. Maybe you can try and snap him out of his funk while I run some tests on your mom. She seems stable right now, so you shouldn't worry too much." Bulma assured the demi-saiyan.

"I guess I could give it a try, if nothing else, maybe it will help me take my mind off of the situation." Gohan said looking forlornly at his mother.

"Get out of here. Don't worry, kiddo. Chi-Chi is strong, she'll be just fine."

Gohan nodded and left the room to go find Vegeta. He found him draped over his recliner idly flipping through channels. Seeing the Prince of the Saiyans in such a state caused something to snap in Gohan's mind. He had not realized the total extent of his father's decision had impacted those around him. He knew his feelings about the situation, and could feel his mother's depression, but to think that Vegeta has given up in his constant training, Gohan was flabbergasted.

Gohan walked into the room and stepped in front of the television. "Move it, Kakkabrat." Vegeta demanded.

"No, I need something to take my mind off of….everything. Let's go to the gravity room for a quick spar." Gohan insisted.

"Not interested. Now move it before I blast you." Vegeta growled.

"In your current condition, I doubt you could hit the side of Dedoria with a blast." Gohan taunted.

Vegeta scowled and fired a blast from his finger, which Gohan easily avoided, causing said blast to hit the television behind him. Vegeta's jaw almost hit the floor when he saw the smoking and crackling remains of his beloved tv.

Gohan suppressed the urge to laugh out loud, but could help but comment. "Ummm…. I think you are experiencing….technical difficulties?"

Vegeta crushed the now useless remote beefier standing and striding over to the preteen and jabbed in the chest with his finger. "You. Me. Gravity chamber, now!" Gohan smirked as Vegeta stomped away in the direction of the specially reinforced room.

'Maybe this will be good for both of us.' Gohan contemplated popping his neck in anticipation of the coming workout.

 **Sorry again for the delay in getting this out. I'll be updating Tides of Change next, but I already have plans in place for the next installment of The Warrior of the Light. Until next time.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Welcome to Chapter 3. To anyone that might have been offended by the last chapter, I'm not sorry. There are some sick people out there that do unthinkable things to minors. I have two daughters myself and one was almost abducted from a city park several months ago. The old man got away, but at least we were able to keep him from taking my daughter. Anyway, I hope everyone has a happy and safe 4th of July. Enjoy.**

It was about two hours later when the doors to the gravity room opened revealing a bruised and bloodied Vegeta being supported by an equally battered Gohan. Gohan had almost needed to ascend to defeat the Prince, but managed to eek out a victory in just his base super saiyan form. While Gohan did have the advantage of superior power, Vegeta still had more experience, and it showed in their spar. Gohan assisted Vegeta to one of the recovery pods and was about to go clean himself up when the elder saiyan stopped him.

"Gohan," Gohan was shocked to hear Vegeta use his name, but could tell that the Prince had something important to say. "Thanks."

It took him a second to understand why Vegeta was thanking him, but then it became clear. "I miss him too."

"Nobody hears of this, got that, brat!" Vegeta growled.

"Sure, whatever you say."

Gohan was almost to the guest room given to him by Bulma when the bluenette called out to him. "Gohan!" Gohan stopped and waited for her to catch up with him.

"Hey, Bulma. How's mom doing?" He inquired.

"That's what I needed to talk to you about. Don't worry, your mom is fine for now, but she needs to rest." Bulma responded. "This pregnancy is really draining her. She needs to be put on bed rest and do as little as possible. I'm afraid that she is going to overwork herself if she isn't careful. That's why I am going to recommend that you two move in here, at least until after she has the baby."

Gohan nodded in understanding. He knew that if they were at their house, his mother would continue to try and do everything as she had always done. "What do you need me to do?"

"Go to your house and bring what you need for an extended stay. You can bring the house if you want, we have plenty of room on the property. You are welcome to stay in the main facility, but I know how independent Chi-Chi can be." Bulma said.

"Can I see my mom?" Gohan asked.

"She is sleeping now, you can look in on her, but please don't disturb her." Bulma informed him.

"Okay. Thanks, Bulma. For everything."

"Don't mention it, squirt. Besides, I should be the one thanking you. Prince Pain in the Ass has been moping four weeks now. He'll never admit it, but Goku's death was very hard on him."

"I think dad knew that his decision would heavily affect everyone, I'm sure he didn't come to it lightly. I just hope it wasn't the wrong one." Gohan said quietly as he turned to go check on his mother.

"Me too, kiddo. Me too."

Gohan quietly entered his mother's room and saw that she was sleeping soundly. He smiled slightly at her peaceful expression, happy she was finally able to rest. He closed his eyes as his face turned stony and he clenched his fists. 'Mom, I'm sorry. If it weren't for me, dad wouldn't have had to make the decision to stay away. I promise, I will be there for you and my sibling.' He swore with his fist clenched tight enough to draw blood.

Gohan left the room as quietly as he had entered and found Bulma to let her know he was going to his house to pack up. He used the long flight home to reflect on the new developments in his life since the Cell Games.

He lost his father, but he is gaining a younger sibling. The world had lost one of its greatest defenders. Could he really do it? Could he honor his father's request and step up to be the Earth's new protector? Sure, he had the power, but he was not his father, he is not a fighter. Gohan resolved to seek out Piccolo once he was done at the house.

So caught up in his thoughts, Gohan almost flew right past his home without realizing it. Looking down, he spotted someone walking around the house, looking in the windows as they circled around the perimeter. Dropping down, Gohan heard a familiar voice shout in surprise.

"Gohan! Don't do that to me! You scared me! Where have you been? I've been looking for you all day!" Lime shouted in annoyance.

'Damn it, I forgot all about meeting up with Lime today!' Gohan mentally chastised himself.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Gohan apologised. "Sorry Lime, it has been a crazy day." He proceeded to relay the events of the day.

"Oh wow! You're going to be a big brother! That's great!" Lime said excitedly.

Her enthusiasm was contagious as Gohan felt his spirits lifting, but that only lasted a moment before he frowned and looked away.

"What's wrong, Gohan? Aren't you excited?" Lime asked a little concerned.

"Well, yeah I'm excited, but this pregnancy is really hard on my mom, so we're going to have to move in with some friends so they can monitor her condition." Gohan said sadly.

"Oh…." Lime said, her earlier enthusiasm forgotten. "Do they live far?"

"They live in West City." He replied.

"But that's so far away!" Lime exclaimed. She was worried she would never see Gohan again if he moved to a big city like that. Besides, how could she, a simple country girl, compete with girls from the city.

"I know, but don't worry. I'll come see you as often as I can." Gohan promised.

"Really?" Lime asked hopefully.

"Of course! And it's not like it'll be forever, just until after the baby is born and mom recovers." Gohan tried reassuring his friend. "After I pack up, I should go tell your grandfather what's going on. I hope he'll understand."

"I'm sure he will. Do you need any help?" Lime offered.

"No, I've got it." Gohan said as he uncovered a hidden panel on the side of the house revealing a large button. Pressing the button, the house vanished in a cloud of smoke and a fist sized capsule landed on the ground.

"I guess we should go see your grandfather now." Gohan said after he put the capsule into a pouch.

"Ummm….Gohan, would you mind carrying me?" Lime asked with a light blush.

"Sure." Gohan smiled, not noticing her blush. He scooped her up bridal style and took off for Chazki village. Lime lay her head on Gohan's shoulder feeling secure in his arms.

Gohan landed just outside the village and Lime grabbed his hand as they walked to Mr Lao's shop. Gohan couldn't help but blush at the contact, and Lime thought he looked adorable flustered.

Mr Lao was setting up a display of fresh fruit when the two preteens walked up. Mr Lao set down the melon he had just picked up and affixed a stern look on his student. "You missed your lesson this morning."

Gohan extricated his hand from Lime's so he could step forward and now respectfully. "I apologise, Sensei. There was a bit of a family crisis this morning. In fact, I'm sorry to say that I will have to postpone further training until further notice. You see, my mother collapsed in the kitchen earlier and I found out that she is pregnant. We are having to move to West City so that my mother's condition can be monitored properly. I will be needed around home to ensure she gets plenty of rest."

Mr Lao stroked his beard thoughtfully. He had heard the story of how Gohan's father had sacrificed himself. "Son, a man has to know how to be responsible. I see in you a great man in the making. I have given you the basis of my style, adapt it to fit your needs. Go now and take care of your family. Good luck, Son Gohan."

"Thank you very much, Sensei Lao." Gohan bowed once again. Turning to Lime. "Sorry, but I have to run, I want to be there when mom wakes up. I still need to set up the house and get it ready for her. I'll see you later." Gohan promised before looking around to see if anyone was watching. Not seeing anyone around, her quickly took off and made a beeline for West City and Capsule Corp.

Mr Lao watched the young man fly away. "Yes, he will make a fine man one day." With that, he went back to setting up the display.

Lime watched Gohan disappear into the distance. "Gohan…."

After returning to Capsule Corp, Gohan checked in with his mother, who was still sleeping, and then went to find Bulma. "Hey Bulma, I'm back with the house." He announced when he found her in the lab.

"That's great! Come with me, I'll show you where you can set it up." Bulma led Gohan outside and through a wooded area to a clearing that had a stream running through it.

"Oh wow! Bulma, this is awesome! It reminds me of Mt Paozu. And there's just enough room to set up the house." Gohan exclaimed seeing the setting. He quickly found the perfect location and placed the capsule on the ground. With the press of a button, a cloud of smoke appeared. When the smoke cleared, the house was revealed, perfectly positioned between the trees and the stream. Gohan was just about to enter the house when Bulma's watch started beeping.

"Oh, it seems Chi-Chi is finally waking up." Bulma said. Seeing Gohan's confused look, she explained. "I set a monitor on your mom to alert me when she was regaining consciousness. You know, just in case she needed anything when she woke."

"Oh, right. Good thinking. Let's go see her." Gohan smiled.

"Uh...Where am I?" Chi-Chi said groggily as she sat up. She didn't recognise where she was and was just about to call out when the door opened and Bulma walked in with Gohan.

"Mom! How are you feeling?" Gohan asked with concern in his eyes.

"Umm….Gohan? What are we doing here?" Chi-Chi asked puzzled.

"You collapsed in the kitchen this morning, don't you remember?"

"I did?" Chi-Chi asked. Looking around, she saw the time. "Oh no! It's so late! Come on Gohan, we need to get back to the house, there's so much that I need to do!"

"No, mom." Chi-Chi stopped cold when she heard Gohan's refusal. "You're not doing anything today, not until I know you are alright. After that, we will go home, but I've moved the house to out behind Bulma's." Gohan said firmly. "I don't want you overexerting yourself again, not while you are carrying my little brother or sister."

Chi-Chi paled. "You know? But how?"

"I did a ki scan of you when you collapsed. Bulma confirmed it while you were recovering. Why didn't you tell anyone? Why didn't you tell me?" Gohan finished with tears in his eyes.

"Oh, honey. I'm sorry. I didn't want you to worry. I knew I couldn't hide it forever, but after hearing that Goku…." Chi-Chi started to break down in tears herself.

"Oh, mom…." Gohan embraced his mother and tried to calm her down. "It'll be okay, I'm here to help. Please, let me take some of your burden."

Bulma just stood in the doorway and wiped a few tears from her eyes.

Chi-Chi wiped her eyes as she regained control over her emotions. "Thank you, Gohan. But don't think I'm going to let you disrupt your studies."

"Of course, mom. Just please promise me that you will take it easy. I don't know what I would do if anything happened to you." Chi-Chi, still not quite recovered, agreed quietly and laid back down, drifting back to sleep.

"Hey kiddo, it'll be alright, your mom is tough." Bulma assured the demi-saiyan.

"Yeah, you're right." Gohan said getting up. He went out to the house and straightened up from where Chi-Chi had been working on breakfast. Luckily she had just started so not much food had been wasted. The spoiled food was added to the compost boxes to make fertilizer for the grounds around Capsule Corp. The next morning, after breakfast with Bulma and young Trunks, Gohan led his mother to where their house had been relocated to. Chi-Chi loved the location. Close enough to receive help if needed, but with a sense of privacy that she appreciated.

They quickly settled in and began to find a routine. Gohan would go out early to warm up, then come in to help his mother fix breakfast and then wash the dishes for her. After that, Gohan would study for a few hours until lunch. After lunch, Gohan would usually seek out Vegeta for a spar followed by more studying. Once or twice a week, Gohan would visit Lime for a couple of hours. He would sometimes take her to West City for shopping, or just sit with her and talk. Evenings would see Gohan assisting with cooking once again, and after cleaning up, would hit the books for a few more hours.

Being so close to Capsule Corp had one major benefit in Chi-Chi's opinion, an almost unlimited source of study material. Gohan, while not as enthusiastic as his mother, enjoyed having access to Capsule Corp's vast libraries.

 **{{{{{{{Time Skip 3 Months}}}}}}}**

Gohan and Lime were on a hill overlooking a lake near Lime's home. They were laying in the grass enjoying the pleasant fall weather, Lime had her head resting on Gohan's shoulder. They were watching clouds pass, each lost in their own thoughts. Gohan knew that soon his little brother would be born. His mother had been placed on bed rest a month prior due to the rough pregnancy. Lime could tell that Gohan might be with her physically, but mentally, he had left her months ago. This saddened her greatly. She knew that she really liked Gohan, but was beginning to think it was just a childhood crush.

"Hey Gohan." She said sitting up so she could look at her friend.

"What's up, Lime?" Gohan asked confused.

"Do-do you like me?" Lime asked looking away with a blush.

"Well, yeah. I think you're a great friend." Gohan responded innocently.

"So that's it, huh? Just a friend?" Lime asked, not wanting to look at him lest he see the tears gathering in her eyes.

"I….Lime, I think I know what you're asking….and, I can't give you an answer. With everything that has happened, and is going on now, I….I just don't think I'm ready." Gohan said with a sigh.

"I-I understand. *sniff* My parents came back today. They want me to move in with them, to be a family again." Lime admitted forlornly. She had missed her parents, but she didn't want to leave Gohan or her grandfather. She knew her parents believed Mr Satan's lies and so knew that they would never accept Gohan. She had hoped that Gohan would feel the same as she did about him, then maybe they could have worked together to persuade her parents to see the truth.

"Oh, hey, that's good news. Where do they live? Maybe I can still visit you from time to time." Gohan said trying to cheer her up.

"I-I don't think that is a good idea, they wouldn't understand how you could visit me because they believe everything that Mr Satan says. Be-besides, maybe it would be for the-the best that we don't see each other any more. I-I don't think I could handle it." Lime said, tears starting to fall. "I don't know, maybe we can meet again in the future someday, maybe then it won't hurt so much." Lime stood up and ran away leaving a speechless Gohan sitting on the ground. He wanted to chase after her, but he didn't want to hurt her more. With a sad sigh, he took to the air and returned home.

 **{{{{{{Time Skip 3 months}}}}}}**

A rare light snow started falling in West City just before Christmas and a pained scream could be heard coming from the medical ward at Capsule Corp. Gohan was waiting in the hall waiting to hear what he was praying was good news. His mother went into labor in the early hours of the morning and he rushed to her room in the main building where she had been staying for several weeks now. When he arrived, he found that his mother had been moved to an operating room just incase any complications occurred. The pregnancy had taken a severe toll on his mother, she had to be put on an IV drip and monitored around the clock.

"Come on, Chi-Chi! Push!" Bulma coached from her bedside. The robotic midwife reported that the baby's head had just crowned. A few minutes later, a very tired and weak Chi-Chi was holding the newest addition to her family, a baby boy with a mass of unruly black hair on the top of his head. Chi-Chi smiled sweetly at the newborn as she held him as he started to suckle on her breast. Thanks to the nutrients that had been supplied intravenously, she had plenty of milk to sate his hunger for the time being. She knew from experience that that would not last for long.

"Chi-Chi." Bulma said to get her friend's attention. Chi-Chi didn't say anything, just looked at her to continue. "Just a couple of things. First off, have you thought of a name for him yet?"

"Yes," Chi-Chi said. "His name is Goten."

"That's a good name. The other thing is concerning his tail…."

*sigh* "I think it would be for the best to go ahead and remove it." Chi-Chi decided.

"Probably a good idea. I'm going to go get Gohan, i'm sure he is wearing a hole in the floor out there by now." Bulma joked.

Bulma had just poked her head out the door when she was assaulted by a barrage of questions. "Bulma! How's mom? How's the baby? Can I see them?"

"Slow down there, kiddo. Your mom and the baby are both just fine. Your mom is really tired, so you will only have a few minutes before you have to leave, got it?"

"Thanks Bulma!" Gohan rushed into the room to see a sight he was not ready for, his mother's bare breast as she fed his little brother. Blushing furiously, he quickly turned away.

"It's okay, Gohan. Come say hello to your little brother, Goten." Chi-Chi said as she covered herself up. Gohan slowly approached the bed and laid his eyes on the newborn for the first time.

"Wow, he looks just like dad." Gohan said in amazement. Thinking of Goku though quickly brought on a small bout of depression for the young man. 'He'll never get to see his father, all because I was too arrogant to do what I had to.'

"Here, why don't you hold him for a moment? *yawn* Give him to Bulma, I need to sleep." Chi-Chi said, suddenly overcome from the fatigue of childbirth.

Gohan took his little brother from his mother as she fell asleep. He studied the monitors that his mother was hooked up to, and seeing nothing irregular, sighed in relief that everything was going to work out. Turning his attention back to the baby, he saw that he was staring at him with large innocent eyes as black as onyx. "You remind me so much of dad, it's uncanny. Don't worry squirt, I'm here for you, now and forever. You can count on your big bro." Goten cooed at that, then fell asleep sucking his thumb. Smiling, Gohan handed Goten over to Bulma so that she could take care of him. Gohan sat down next to his sleeping mother. "Don't worry, mom. I'll be the best big brother, just you see."

 **That's the end of Chapter 3. Next chapter will be a small time skip. I'm sorry if anyone was wanting more interaction with Lime, I do plan on having them meet up again once the high school arc starts.**


	4. Chapter 4

After the difficult pregnancy and birth, Chi-Chi was in no condition to go home to Mt Paozu. Left weakened it was all she could do just to nurse Goten with what little milk she could produce. Gohan helped whenever he could, feeding his little brother and changing diapers. It was almost his birthday when a new problem came up. Because Chi-Chi had been bedridden for so long, Gohan had taken up the duty of balancing the family's finances.

Putting his pencil down and scooting his chair back from the table, Gohan sighed in frustrated acceptance. 'Mom did a good job investing dad's tournament winnings, but the dividends just aren't going to be enough anymore.' Gohan sighed again. "We need some new income to keep a float."

Gohan flipped on the television just as someone knocked on the front door. He was surprised to see a familiar lavender haired teen standing in his entry. "Trunks!" Gohan was suddenly apprehensive. "You're not here to tell us about some impending calamity, are you?"

Trunks laughed. "No, nothing like that. I just came to tell everyone that I was finally able to defeat the androids in my time. I also found and killed Cell."

"That's great! Hopefully that is the last we will have to deal with him." Gohan exclaimed. "Do you want to come in?"

"Sure. Mom and dad are currently…. Umm…. Preoccupied at the moment." Trunks said blushing.

Gohan instantly understood what he meant and blushed a little himself. He had walked into the Brief's living room one day and found Vegeta with Bulma bent over the back of the sofa. He thought he had slipped out without being noticed, but every time he saw Vegeta over the next two weeks, the prince would shoot him a knowing smirk.

An instantly recognizable laugh coming from the tv drew the boys from mental images they would rather not think about. Sure enough, the "Savior of the World" was on the screen.

" **Haha! Yeah! Who thinks they have what it takes to challenge the Champ?** Satan Fighting Entertainment Productions extends a challenge to all that dare. Through the secrets of science, a portal to another world has been opened and a challenge has been issued. Bring your strongest fighters to face earth's champion. It all goes down April First, 768!"

Gohan looked at Trunks and a smirk slowly formed on his face. Trunks returned the smirk as the possibilities raced through their minds. "You thinking what I am?"

"I may have to postpone my return home." Trunks responded with an excited gleam in his eye.

Gohan moved over to his computer and pulled up the browser to find out more information. He scowled in irritation when he saw that it required participants to be at least eighteen years old. "What! Dad was allowed to compete when he was twelve, that's only a year older than me. I'm going to call them to see if they could make an exception." Gohan said reaching for the phone.

"Satan Fighting Entertainment Productions, how may I direct your call?" A friendly sounding receptionist answered.

"Good morning, I would like to speak to someone about registering for the intergalactic tournament coming up." Gohan requested.

"One moment please." She put him on hold to transfer his call.

"This is Jack Hoff, who am I talking with?" An inpatient voice answered.

"Mr Hoff, I am Son Gohan. I…." Gohan started before he was cut off.

"Listen, kid. I don't have time for your stupid questions about the 'aliens'. I'm a very busy man." With that he hung up on the young demi-saiyan. The phone shattered in Gohan's hand. Gohan spun around and started for the door till a hand grasped his shoulder.

"Let it go, Gohan. It's not worth it." Trunks said in a sympathetic tone.

"Ugh! This is so unfair. I have the strength to destroy worlds but I'm not allowed to even enter a stupid tournament of weaklings." Gohan groused.

"It says here that they have a junior championship, and the grand prize is still pretty considerable." Trunks pointed at the computer screen.

Gohan looked at where he indicated. "That could cover us for a couple of years, but we'd eventually have to find another source of income." Gohan considered. Making a decision, he went ahead and registered for the junior championship while Trunks signed up for the adult tournament.

"I'll share my winnings with you. That should set you till you can start working for Mom, if that's still the plan." Trunks offered.

"She can't put me on the payroll till I'm sixteen, but yeah, I still plan on working for her in the future." Gohan confirmed.

 **-Line Break-**

"Hey Dad." A young raven haired girl called out.

"Yeah Sweetpea?" Her father responded without taking his eyes off the mirror in front of him. Here turned side to side a couple of times and frowned at his expanding waistline.

"You think there will be anyone at the tournament that might give me a good fight?" She asked in a bored tone.

"Huh? Oh, I doubt it Sweetpea, you're the daughter of The Champ after all. Hahaha!" Hercule Satan laughed. Videl wasn't surprised by his boisterous outburst, but she was a bit disappointed by the lack of a challenge all the kids her age provided.

"I wish I could fight the adults.". She said wistfully. "Hey Dad, you're the Champ, can't you pull some strings and let me fight in the adult category?"

"Sorry Sweetpea, but rules are rules. And we can't have you embarrassing the older competitors, now can we?" Hercule patted her on the head.

Just then the doorbell rang. A few moments later a blonde blur shot into the room and almost tackled Videl. "Vi! Oh my gosh! I'm so excited! What do you think the aliens are going to be like?"

"Erasa, calm down. I hate to disappoint you, but there aren't any real aliens. It's just a couple of Dad's students dressed up in tacky costumes." Videl said pushing her friend away gently.

"Well poo. I wanted to meet a real live alien." Erasa pouted.

Videl chuckled at her friend's disappointment. "Who knows, maybe you'll meet one one day."

"You really think so?" Erasa asked hopefully.

"Sure, anything is possible." Videl shrugged noncommittally.

"Hey! Let's go so we can score the best seats to watch Videl and her dad kick butt." Sharpner said impatiently from the door. Erasa and Videl both rolled their eyes as Videl grabbed her bag with a change of clothes for after the junior tournament.

"Hey Sharpner, why don't you compete?" Erasa asked the blonde male.

"Yeah, dad says you are one of his best up and coming students and that you have a lot of potential." Videl added.

"No way, I like my ass where it is and in one piece thank you very much."

"Whatever. Alright, let's go." Videl announced.

 **-Line Break-**

"Hey Mom! We're off. You're sure you're going to be okay?" Gohan announced.

"Go on, sweetie, I'll be fine. I've got Bulma here if I need anything." Chi-Chi responded from her bed. While she still spent most of her time in bed, she was slowly regaining her strength to where she could get around to a limited capacity. "Be careful. I'll be watching and cheering you on from here."

"Thanks Mom, I love you." Gohan walked over and hugged her.

"I love you too, now get out of here and win us some money." Chi-Chi laughed and shooed him out the door.

Trunks was waiting in the living room when Gohan walked in with a small smile on his face. "Ready?"

"Yeah. Let's go." Gohan nodded. The two demi-saiyans went outside and took to the skies flying toward the private island that the tournament was being held on. As the island came into view, Gohan was able to pick up on a few ki signatures. "Hey! Krillin is there along with Piccolo and Yamcha!" Gohan shouted excitedly.

On the island three heads turned in the direction of the newcomers. "Damn, it's Gohan and Trunks." Krillin cursed under his breath.

"Well, there go our chances for the top three." Yamcha sighed.

"Hey guys." Gohan greeted as he and Trunks landed.

"Hey Gohan, Trunks." Krillin and Yamcha both responded slightly dejectedly. Piccolo just nodded in their direction.

"Hey Trunks, what brings you back to our time?" Krillin had to ask.

"Oh, I just came back to let everyone know that my timeline is now free from the tyranny of the Androids. I was also able to locate and destroy my timeline's version of Cell." Trunks announced proudly.

"That's awesome, great job man!" Yamcha said clapping him on the shoulder. "But what brings you to the tournament here?"

"I heard about it while I was talking to Gohan and decided it sounded like fun, so I stuck around for a little while." Trunks shrugged.

"Well damn, just our luck." Yamcha groaned.

"At least we'll still make the top five." Krillin reasoned which drew a sour expression from Gohan. "What's wrong?"

"They won't let him compete in the adult tournament. New rules state that all competitors must be at least eighteen years old." Trunks explained.

"That suck man." Krillin said trying to keep the relieved smile off his face. He still had a chance to place in the top three now. The same thought was going through Yamcha's mind. A huge commotion on the other side of the island drew their attention. Flying over and landing on the top of a nearby building, they could see a large gaudy jet rolling to a stop on the runway.

"Oh great, the sideshow is here." Krillin scoffed. It rubbed him the wrong way that Hercule Satan took credit for Cell's defeat and wrote off all their abilities as just tricks, but he knew that Gohan had no intention of taking the credit for himself. He lost so much that day, they all did, and Gohan just wanted to put that all behind him.

Following Hercule off the jet were a well dressed business man and his family. Then the moment that many in the crowd were waiting for, four oddly dressed individuals descended the steps. Upon seeing the "aliens" the Z Fighters burst out laughing.

Piccolo looked on in disgust at the display. "I don't have time for this shit. See you, kid." Levitating of the roof, Piccolo took flight to return to the lookout.

On a separate section of runway Videl had just capsulized her jet car when she heard the ruckus coming from the VIP tarmac. She rolled her eyes at the spectacle that was her father. *Sigh* "Let's go before we get caught in that circus."

Leading her friends toward the food court, Videl paused when she thought she saw a group of people standing on a nearby roof. When she looked again they were gone.

"Hey V, what's up?" Erasa asked when she noticed her friend had stopped.

Shaking her head, Videl answered. "Nothing, thought I saw something, but I guess I imagined it."

"Look at those losers." Sharpner scoffed seeing Gohan and the Z Fighters entering the food court from another entrance.

"I don't know, I think a couple of them are kinda cute." Erasa giggled looking at Gohan and Trunks.

Videl eyed them suspiciously. They seemed oddly familiar, but she couldn't place where she had seen them before. Seeing Gohan in his gi, she assumed he was one of her opponents in the junior division. 'Hmm, he has some decent muscle, but he looks too carefree to be that serious. I can take him no sweat.'

Videl felt a chill run down her spine when the young boy suddenly turned to her and caught her gaze. He had the look of someone who would not hesitate to defend himself or his friends. As suddenly as the look appeared it vanished to be replaced by a goofy grin as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. Videl had to reevaluate her previous assumptions about this boy.

Gohan stopped walking suddenly and searched the courtyard when his senses picked up someone watching him intently. He caught the gaze of a young girl, probably about his age, starting at him as if she were sizing him up. Mentally kicking himself for overreacting he smiled at her as he took in her features. She was very petite with long black hair done up in twintails and brilliant blue eyes. Her friend suddenly stepped between them to say something to her and Gohan almost felt his heart stop. He was looking at one of the most beautiful girls he had ever laid eyes on. She had shoulder length blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes that just drew him in. She saw him looking at her and she giggled and waved coyly.

Gohan felt a punch to his shoulder as Krillin spoke up. "Gohan, you dog."

"What's up?" Yamcha asked having noticed Gohan and Krillin stopped.

"Gohan was checking out the cuties over there." Krillin teased.

"Not bad little man. Go on, talk to them." Yamcha have the young demi-saiyan a shove.

Gohan sighed reluctantly, but still made his way over to the two girls. "Umm…. Hi, I'm Gohan." He introduced himself nervously.

"Hi! I'm Erasa. And this is my bestie, Videl." Erasa introduced herself and Videl. When she had first seen Gohan she hoped he would say something. 'What a cutie, I wonder if he is fighting today?'

Before the preteens could say anything else, Sharpner came up and wrapped his arms around the two girls. "Beat it pipsqueak, these are my girls." Suddenly the blonde boy doubled over gasping for air when Videl elbowed him hard in the gut.

"How many times to I have to tell you, Sharpner, I am not and never will be your girl."

"Come on, Videl, you know I'm there only guy that your father is going to approve of." Sharpner wheezed.

Unsure of what to do, Gohan just excused himself. "Hehe, sorry, but I have to go catch up with my friends." He said rubbing the back of his head. "Maybe we will meet again sometime."

Erasa watched Gohan head of to rejoin his group then turned and kicked Sharpner in the shin sending him to the ground in pain again.

"What did I do?" He complained.

"You lunkhead, I didn't even get to find out if he was competing or not." She pouted before chasing after Videl who had already started for the changing rooms.

"So…? You score any digits?" Yamcha asked with a smirk when Gohan caught up with them. He almost face palmed at the confused look Gohan have him. "Of course not. We need to help you step up your game."

"Like you have any better luck with the ladies." Krillin teased.

"Hey! I have plenty of luck…." Yamcha started to defend himself.

"Yeah, all bad." Krillin interrupted.

Gohan decided to slip away while those two were preoccupied. Wandering about, he soon found himself in the competitor's staging room. There were several competitors warming up with various pieces of equipment. Ignoring them for now, he went over to the entrance to the arena and looked on in amazement at the setup. Just outside the staging room was a standard tournament ring, but jutting out over the water was a four tiered fighting platform. Off in the distance he could see an island with a dormant volcano.

"Pretty amazing, isn't it?" A young woman's voice said behind him. "It's just not fair, I should be able to compete up there with the adults, but instead I have to settle for the standard ring with the youth for now."

Gohan turned to see Videl standing next to him admiring the view as well. He took a moment to assess her ki level and was slightly surprised at how high it was for a normal human. "I know what you mean, my dad was allowed to compete at the age of twelve. Just doesn't seem right that we have to be separated by age now."

Videl looked at him in shock. "Twelve! Who is your dad?"

Videl noticed the way his eyes lost focus as he stared out toward the horizon. Suddenly she realized that he must be gone. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

With a sigh and a shake of his head, Gohan answered. "No, it's alright, I'm learning to cope with him being gone."

"If it's any consolation, I lost my mom too. It's hard. I miss her so much, but I know she wouldn't want me to dwell on the past." Videl revealed without meaning to. She didn't know why, but she felt a certain kinship with this young man.

Gohan reached over and placed a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. Videl smiled and nodded her thanks. "Gohan, right?"

"Yes, and it was Videl if I'm not mistaken." Gohan confirmed.

"That's right. I figured you were competing today when I saw you earlier, glad I was right. Well, I hope to see you in the ring. Later." Videl turned to leave before things turned awkward. Finding the match listings, she saw that they were on opposite ends of the pyramid. Hopefully they could meet in the finals and actually have a decent match.

Shortly after Videl left the announcer came over the loudspeaker to call the junior contestants to the ring. This also drew the attention of the spectators alerting them to the start of the festivities.

" **Welcome to the first ever Intergalactic Tournament of Power! We have a stunning event for you today. In another first, we will have four simultaneous battle royals. Then each of the winners will take on one of our special guests from another planet. After a thrilling race to the finish, the winner will get the privilege of facing Mr Satan himself for the chance to win ten million zeni!"**

" **But first, please direct your attention to the ring in front of you as 16 talented youth fight it out in our youth tournament."**

Gohan entered the ring in the first round followed by his opponent. He stood 6 foot 3 with a fair bit of muscle. "Hey runt, I sure hope you brought a body bag because I'm about to kill you.". He stated as he threw a series of fast punches and a kick in an attempt to intimidate Gohan.

The announcer entered the ring to lay out the rules. " **I want a good clean fight. The fight will be over when one contestant leaves the ring, gives up, or is knocked out. Let's get it on!"**

Gohan offered a slight how l bow out of courtesy which his opponent ignored, instead taking up his stance. Videl was curious why he didn't take a stance of his own. Gohan just stood there with his arms crossed over his chest and observed his opponent. This irritated the older boy to no end.

Charging in he launched a powerful right hook that just barely missed its target. A flurry of punches flew from then, all timing empty air. Videl watched on as Gohan used the minimum amount of movement needed to avoid any of the strikes. She gasped when she noticed that even though his opponent was dancing all around him, Gohan's feet had not moved an inch.

The older boy was getting frustrated by this short upstart. Losing out to his anger, he threw a wild haymaker that caused him to overextend when it too missed. Suddenly his world shifted as Gohan finally made a move. Grabbing his arm, Gohan rolled backward and planted a foot into the taller boy's midsection and launched him out of the ring. Continuing the roll till he was on his feet, Gohan bowed to the audience and made his way off the ring.

The next two fights lasted a bit longer, one ending in a submission tap out and the other with a knock out.

Videl felt the excitement as she climbed the steps for her first bout. From the audience she could hear Erasa cheering and spotted her and Sharpner on the front toe in the center. 'He certainly got some great seats.' She saw they had also reserved a seat for her for which she was grateful.

Her opponent was an absolute disappointment. He had obviously ordered her dad's correspondence courses and thought that he was ready for the real deal. She had knocked the poor fool out in less than five seconds. With her match over, so was the first round.

The next two rounds were utterly boring for the two seasoned martial artists. Finally the moment Videl had been anticipating arrived. She stood across from Gohan in the final round.

Gohan smiled at the young woman in front of him. He had been looking forward to seeing what she could do. He knew he still had to hold back, but hopefully she could let him at least stretch his muscles a little. The same thoughts were going through Videl's mind as well.

"Yahoo! Go Videl! Good luck Gohan!" Erasa cheered from the stands.

"Is she always like that?" Gohan couldn't help but ask.

"Annoyingly so." Videl answered with a fond smile. The anticipation inside her building, Videl slipped into the fighting stance she had learned from her father. To her surprise Gohan assumed a stance for the first time in any of his matches. 'Good. He's taking me seriously.' Videl studied his form. It was unlike anything she had ever seen, or was it? Somehow a vague feeling came over her as she could have sworn she had seen this stance before…. but where?

As soon as the announcer called for the start of the match Videl rushed forward with a plan in the making. She feigned with a right to his face then pivoted on her heel dropping into a sweep. Gohan hopped over her leg and twisted in midair to avoid a jab to his chest.

Videl quickly maneuvered away to give herself some distance as she evaluated his skill. Gohan was impressed by her combination.

Videl charged in again, this time with a right cross followed by a spinning backhand to a roundhouse kick, none of which found their mark. She was starting to get frustrated, how was this kid so agile? Suddenly a new plan stuck her.

Remembering the look he had given Erasa in the food court, Videl tried a tactic that she would normally never resort to. She smiled brightly and batted her eyelashes a few times. Inside she was cringing, but the tactic had the desired effect.

Gohan was really enjoying his fight against Videl. She was quite skilled for a human with no concept of ki. He was looking forward to seeing what else she could do when she paused and smiled at him. The way that she batted her eyes at him had him mesmerized. Suddenly his world shifted as his legs were swept from under him and an elbow found its mark on the center of his chest. Landing awkwardly, Gohan rolled and sprang to his feet.

Videl, while impressed by his agility, couldn't help but laugh at the incredulous look he gave her. Rushing him again she planted her hands on the ring floor and brought her legs up in a handstand before spinning into a helicopter kick. Gohan caught her leg and was about to throw her when she folded her arms so she could roll and possibly offset his balance. Gohan released her leg and allowed her to roll away before he moved to intercept her.

While Gohan was moving very slowly in his opinion, to Videl it was as if he teleported in front of her. Unable to stop her momentum she rolled right into his grip and felt herself flying out of bounds. She don't know how she did it, but she was about to catch herself just before flying past the edge of the ring.

Gohan had a look of absolute surprise when he felt her ki spike and she was able to catch the the of a floor tile saving herself from the ring out. 'Amazing, she was able to subconsciously tap into her ki just now.'

Videl stood panting. She had not had this difficult of a fight since she sparred with her father, and even then she had been at least able to land a few blows on him. 'Who in the HFIL is this kid?' Looking at Gohan again, she could see the smile that only comes from enjoying a good fight. Soon a similar smile graced her lips

Slowly the smile faded from Gohan's lips, replaced by a look of sadness and regret. "I'm really sorry, but my family really needs the money."

"Wha…." Videl was cut off when Gohan suddenly appeared right in front of her and thrust his hand forward for a palm strike to her chest. He stopped his hand a millimeter from actually striking her, but the pressure from the speed of his attack hit her like a sledge hammer knocking her off her feet and to the ground outside the ring.

" **And in an incredible display of skill, the winner of the Junior Championship is Son Gohan! Let's hear it for this talented young man! And let's not forget his opponent, the daughter of our savior and world's strongest man, Videl Satan!"** The announcer yelled over the cheers and whistles from the crowd.

Videl looked up to see Gohan standing over her with his hand extended and the goofy grin on his face. Scowling, she accepted his hand and stood up. "You fought really good out there. You really surprised me a couple of times." Gohan complimented.

"Look here, you might have beat me this time, but I will take you down next time." She turned away from him in a huff and stormed off to assuage her wounded pride. Gohan watched her leave feeling a little guilty that she never had a chance to win. Hoping that in time she would forgive him, he hoped to meet her and her friend someday in the future.

" **Alright! It is now the time that everyone has been waiting for! Martial artists please make your way to your assigned platforms! It's time to start the Main Event!**

 **It's finally here. Thank you to all my readers out there for your patience. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Next chapter will start the Intergalactic Championship and lead into the battle with Bojack and the Heras. I had debated whether to include this or not, but I decided that I could use it for a couple of plot points in the future. See you soon.**


	5. Chapter 5

A young brunette was flipping channels absentmindedly when something, or more accurately someone, made her freeze. "Gohan…." She said softly. She had tried to put the boy out of her mind ever since she was told the reason that her parents had finally sought her out at her grandfather's village. Her father's boss was looking for a bride for his son once he came of age, and in a bargain for a better position in the company, her father had offered her hand. Lime was devastated that her parents only saw her as a pawn for their own advancement, but in the end her grandfather convinced her to allow fate to take its course.

She had wanted to tell Gohan everything, but her grandfather told her to ask him his feelings for her. He knew the boy would do anything for Lime, and told her as much, but he asked her if she really wanted to burden Gohan and his family so soon after losing his father. "If he truly loves you, I will do everything I can to stop the engagement, but if he does not, you need to respect his decision." Mr Lao said with a heavy heart. While he loved his granddaughter more than anything else, he couldn't allow her to burden the poor boy's family unless the boy truly loved her in return.

Lime had been introduced to her father's boss and his son a few weeks after moving in with her parents. The boy seemed to be as incensed as her about the engagement, which pleased Lime somewhat. While not outwardly disrespectful, Lime rebelled in small ways. She hardly ever smiled and would go out of her way to make home life difficult for her parents. Her only consolation was that she would be allowed to finish up through high school before the marriage ceremony.

Watching Gohan on the tv, a tear ran down her cheek. "Gohan…." Wiping her eyes, she changed channels after watching him win the junior division championship.

 **-Line Break-**

" **Alright everybody! Now for the start of our main event! We have one hundred of the world's strongest fighters poised and ready on the four platforms you see before you. At my signal, the battle royal will commence. Fighters to the ready! Let's Get It On!"** The announcer shouted excitedly.

Each of the Z-Fighters had chosen a different platform to start on so that they could avoid fighting each other until after the preliminaries. The fighters on each of those platforms never stood a chance. In short order the falling screams of the competitors could be heard as they were quickly launched from the suspended platforms to the water below where members of the rescue crew waited to pull them to safety. In only a matter of minutes Krillin, Yamcha, and Trunks all had their respective platforms cleared. Only the fourth platform was left, but it too was being cleared fairly quickly.

The audience grumbled with a bit of dissatisfaction at how quickly the battle royal was concluded. Besides the three Z-Fighters, there was also a large man named Doskoi who had the appearance of a sumo wrestler. The only reason they were not more vocal with their displeasure was the fact that their fights against the "aliens" and eventually against Mr Satan himself should provide the level of fights that they were anticipating.

" **And there you have it folks! Our Battle Royal finalists are Doskoi…."** the announcer started presenting the semifinalists. Hercule was sitting in the private box with the family of the tournament's sponsor entertaining family's young son who was celebrating his birthday when he caught sight of the winners of the battle royal.

'Hmm….' He recognised Doskoi for the previous tournament. 'Doskoi has gotten stronger, he might give me a good fight for the audience if her can get past my best students.' " **Krillin…."** 'Why does he look familiar? I feel like I had just seen him recently.' " **The up and coming player for the Titans, Yamcha the Bandit…."** Yamcha stepped forward with a awkward wave when a vision of a scene in the wastelands began for form in Hercule's mind. It was right before he fought against that monster, Cell. A group of men literally flew to ringside. There were the man and boy with the golden spiky hair, the big green man, the short man with tall spiky hair, the short bald man that looked just like….the one standing on the ring, *gulp* Y-Yamcha the Bandit, and….Mr Satan was sweating bullets. 'No….no….why are th-they here?!'

" **And Trunks Briefs! These talented individuals will take on our guests from other worlds for the chance to fight Mr Satan! Let's hear it for our challengers!"** The announcer finished to the cheers of the crowd. Hercule had bolted from the skybox the moment he saw the lavender haired Trunks. He was cowering in the bathroom of his private room with all the doors locked. "Why me? Why here? Why are they here? Are they trying to discredit me? I can't fight those monsters, I'm ruined!"

The door to the skybox was forcefully wrenched open and a young raven haired girl stormed in. She looked around and scowled when she didn't see the person she was looking for.

"Ah! Videl, congrats on the second place finish. You performed well out there." Xavier Samuel Cash said welcoming the daughter of the Champ.

"Whatever, I'll kick butt next time." Videl growled "Where's my dad?"

"He said something about stomach cramps and ran out just a few moments ago. I do hope he is feeling better by the time his match is up." X.S. Cash commented.

"Ugh! Whatever." Videl huffed. "When you see him, tell him I am with my friends." She slammed the door as she stormed off without waiting for a reply.

"Oh hey Videl!" Erasa waved enthusiastically when she spotted her friend making her way through the crowd. Arriving to where her friends were waiting with a saved seat for her, Videl flopped down ad crossed her arms angrily. "Hey girl, how are you doing? He didn't hurt you too bad, did he?" Erasa asked in a concerned tone.

"No." Videl snapped. "He barely even touched me. What's worse is that he apologised for beating me! The nerve!" Videl ranted.

"Are you sure you weren't just having an off day? I can believe a little shrimp like that was able to take you out so easily." Sharpner tried to reason.

"Whatever it is, I'm going to train twice as hard now so that the next time I see him, I'll kick his ass." Videl huffed.

"That's the spirit girl!" Erasa cheered. 'That way I can see that cutie again.'

 **-Line Break-**

Down in the luxuriously appointed competitor waiting room, Gohan was able to meet up with the rest of the Z fighters and congratulate them on making it through. They all turned to look at their other competitor as he approached respectfully. "You guys are not like the other opponents I have faced in the past, you have been trained in the old way if I am not mistaken." Doskoi stated.

"..." The Z Fighters were not sure how to answer the large man.

"I know that what you can do is not tricks or sleight of hand. My old sensei was able to perform many incredible feats, but I was young and did not follow his teachings as I should have. I became impatient with the slow progress I was making, so I opted to seek a more expedient path to strength." Doskoi admitted. "While I may not have learned his techniques, I am still able to recognise them for what they truly are. I realise I am out matched in this competition, but my honor will not allow me to back down. I look forward to challenging ones such as yourselves." Turning toward Gohan, he finished. "It is humbling to see one as young as yourself capable of such feats. I wish the day would come where more youths could take up the mantle of the old ways once again." He concluded with a respectful bow.

The Z Fighters looked amongst themselves slightly embarrassed. Yamcha was the first one to speak up. "Hey big guy, don't get so down on yourself. It's not like we are actually fighting against each other in this match, it's more of a race. You still stand a chance of making it to the finals."

"Yeah, you have to have at least some talent if you made it this far." Krillin piped up.

"Thank you for your kind words, it is amazing how humble you all can be with such power at your fingertips." Doskoi turned to leave the group to relax, but made a final comment over his shoulder. "Just for the record, I know that Mr Satan did not defeat that monster, Cell."

His final comment left the group speechless for a few minutes. "Well, at least one person didn't buy that bull that Mr Satan is shoveling." Yamcha said scratching the back of his head.

Suddenly a voice came over the loudspeaker. " **Attention competitors, we are five minutes from docking. Please report to your pre-assigned stations. We will be starting the semi-finals as soon as we are docked."**

"Well, good luck guys. Sure wish I was going to be going with you." Gohan said as he turned to head back to the bleachers, with maybe a quick stop by the food court.

"Yeah, we're glad that your not thought. Anyway, good luck guys, let's see who makes it to the finish line first." Yamcha said.

"Yeah, good luck guys." Trunks said.

"Easy for you to say, Mr Super Saiyan." Krillin rolled his eyes. Trunks just shrugged his shoulders.

Gohan stopped by the food court, and after selecting several dishes from each of the vendors, found a seat with a good view of the large screen tv as the semi-finalists were shown to be boarding special rocket pods that would take them to various locations around the island for their challenges.

" **Alright everybody! The time you have been waiting for is here! Each competitor will be launched down their respective tracks that will take them to meet their challengers from beyond the stars! From there, they will have a foot race to the ring for the final match with The Savior of the World, The Champ himself, Mr Satan!"** The crowd cheered wildly as the announcer finished. The sound of the rocket engines only added fuel to the crowd's excitement. Suddenly all four rocket pods shot down their tracks and giant monitors emerged from hidden compartments in the ground to display the coming action.

 **-With Yamcha-**

Yamcha's pod flew out of its tube and skidded across the ground, coming to rest in a sand dune. Getting out and stretching, Yamcha took in his surroundings. He was standing in a large expanse of desert. With a nostalgic smile and a taking a deep breath, he admired the setting. "Man, this brings back memories, Puar would love it here. Oh well, enough reminiscing, guess I'll just have to find my opponent and try and beat the others to the top." Yamcha paused when he thought he heard giggling.

Looking around to locate the source of such an unexpected sound, Yamcha's eyes almost popped out when he saw a beautiful woman with long orange curly hair and teal skin. 'Damn! This is my lucky day! Maybe if I go easy on her I can get a reward from her later.' "H-hi there. Are you supposed to be my opponent?" Yamcha asked cautiously.

The teal skinned woman giggled once more into her hand and nodded. "Screw the prize money, I'll take her instead." Yamcha said to himself earning another giggle. She jumped off the rock that she had been sitting on and slowly approached the former desert bandit. Too late he detected her attack. He was able to block her first kick but didn't react fast enough as she rotated her body and brought her other foot up and nailed him in the side of the face. Moving at super speed, she managed to get in front of his flying body and strike him with a roundhouse kick launching him back to where he had been. He rolled a few times across the ground and leapt to his feet and scanned the area for her. His eyes widened in shock as she appeared behind him and delivered a punishing chop to the side of his neck. Just as he was passing out, his last thoughts were. 'I think I'm in love.'

The mystery woman tossed her hair back and gave the fallen fighter a brief appraisal before picking up his body and vanishing.

 **-Arena-**

" **And there you have it folks, Yamcha the bandit is down for the count!"**

 **-Skybox-**

"I don't remember that woman being a part of the group that accompanied Mr Satan earlier. I wonder who she is? Oh well, That Mr Satan is always full of surprises." X.S. Cash commented to his family.

 **-Capsule Corporation-**

Vegeta was relaxing in the rec room only half watching the tournament when a face briefly appeared on the video feed. Quickly grabbing the remote, he rewound the broadcast and paused it on the face.

"It can't be…." Vegeta said in disbelief. He had only seen images of this person in the historical section of the archives on planet Vegeta. How did he escape his imprisonment? Vegeta looked at his son's sword having in the wall before grabbing it and taking off toward Battle Island.

 **-With Krillin-**

Krillin's pod crashed into a super sized teddy bear. Climbing out, he shook his head in disbelief of what he was seeing. It was any child's dream room. Super sized toys littered the area.

"How in the hell am I supposed to fight in a place like this?" Krillin mused out loud. Sensing danger, he jumped out of the way just as a couple of massive building blocks crashed into the spot he was just occupying.

Looking around, he spotted a small being with teal skin wearing a turban leering at him. "Hey, what gives? You could kill someone like that."

"That was the point." The figure said in an almost childlike voice. Raising his hands towards a giant clock, he used his telekinetic powers to rip the hands free, launching then at Krillin as though they were spears.

Krillin dodged the projectiles and huffed in annoyance when they arced through the air to make another pass at him. Raising his hands above his head, he took aim and shouted. "Masenko-ha!" A golden sphere of energy flew from his hands vaporizing the clock hands. Turning quickly, he dodged another flying block before engaging the strange figure in hand to hand combat.

Bijun dodged the monk's flurry of punches and kicks and captured him in his psychic threads, draining Krillin of a large amount of energy. Desperate to escape, Krillin formed a destructo disc in his right hand and was able to sever the threads binding him.

Krillin didn't see the shadow fall across his back as he prepared to launch his destructo disc at Bijun. A teal hand shot out and stuck Killin at the base of his neck, knowing him out.

 **-Arena-**

The spectators booed at the use of what they believed were light tricks. They could not believe that there great Mr Satan would allow such tricks in his tournament. Many cried out that Mr Satan needed to make an appearance and show these tricksters how a real champ fights.

In the food court Gohan watched with clenched fists as he watched two of his friends get knocked out. Who were these 'aliens'? They certainly couldn't be Mr Satan's students, they were too powerful. He desperately wanted to go help, but seeing Trunks on the monitor gave him pause. He knew Trunks was more than capable of defending himself, and what if one of those aliens attached the civilians? No, he would have to put his faith in Trunks and stay to protect the innocent. He would continue to monitor the situation and jump in to help if he was needed.

 **-Skybox-**

"Mr Satan! My Satan! Sir, we really need you out here!" An attendant pounded on the bathroom door. "Tricksters have taken over the tournament!"

"Fwah!" Hercule faked throwing up. "Oh! My stomach! The agony! Fwah!". Hercule cried out loud while cowering on the toilet. There was no way he was going out there, no thank you. He had been watching the matches on the wall mounted tv and was quaking in fear of what he was witnessing. It was the Cell Games all over again.

 **-Arena-**

The audience watched on as Doskoi finally managed to extricate himself from his crashed pod. He was currently in a large cave lit by pools of bubbling magma. He cautiously scanned the area for his opponent. What the audience could see, but the large fighter was unable to was the muscular figure emerging from the shadow of a rock formation. People started shouting warnings to the fighter as a heavily muscled arm encircled his neck choking off his air supply. With a smirk, Bido brought up his other hand, and with a lightning fast movement, snapped Doskoi's neck with a sickening crunch. Parents in the audience covered their children's eyes while others cried out in shock. More than a few became ill and vomited at the scene. They watched on in horror as the tall teal man dropped the lifeless body of his victim into a nearby lava pit and watched as the body sank into the molten material.

Gohan watched in helpless horror as the large man he had just met was murdered in cold blood. His fists clenched, he vowed to avenge the fallen fighter. A few other people who happened to be in the food court at the same time scurried away as wind whipped around the young man and his hair briefly flickered gold. He was about to make his move when he felt Vegeta approaching at high speed. Remembering the need to protect the innocent civilians, he forced himself to calm down and begin a search of the area for any dangers.

 **-With Trunks-**

Trunks found himself in a sunlit meadow with a relaxing breeze. Closing his eyes, he felt himself relax momentarily before catching himself and bringing his guard back up. He dodged as a red ki blast flew past him. Spinning around he located a figure reclined on a branch of a nearby tree with his hand up and a smirk on his face. Trunks noticed that he also had a sword hanging from his hip.

"What gives, man? That blast could have done some serious damage if it hit someone." Trunks chastised the teal skinned man. Without dropping the smirk, Kogu just pointed his finger and charged another blast. Dodging once again, trunks charged at the man. Kogu dropped off the branch and blocked Trunks' punch and delivered a swift kick to his midsection. Trunks flew back several feet and coughed as he caught his breath. Forming a smirk of his own, Trunks charged in again, this time acknowledging that his opponent was far stronger than he first believed. Once again Kogu blocked the punch aimed at his face, but was caught off guard when Trunks caught his kick, ensnaring his leg. Trunks swung Kogu around several times before throwing him through the tree that he had been previously perched in.

Kogu immediately leapt to his feet and charged at Trunks in an impressive display of speed. Well, it would have been impressive to an average human, but Trunks had no problem slipping under the right hook and delivering a quick jab to Kogu's exposed midsection. Kogu clasped both hands together and attempted to bring them down in a hammer strike against Trunks back, but Trunks was able to roll away in time. Trunks swung his leg low to sweep the teal man, but he just jumped over Trunks' leg and stomped down to break his leg. Trunks rolled back and jumped to his feet to create some distance.

Kogu's smirk grew as he took a stance and started powering up. With a shout, his skin turned lime green and his hair bled from orange to blood red. Charging in quickly, he landed a punch in Trunks' gut lifting him off the ground, a roundhouse kick sent the demi-saiyan flying away like a shot. Moving faster than ever, Kogu was able to get ahead of Trunks and planted him in the ground with a hammer strike.

Kogu was blasted back by a wave of energy as Trunks transformed. As the dust settled, Kogu's smirk turned into a frown as he saw Trunks' ne appearance. Previously lavender hair was now a golden mass of spikes and his eyes had turned light teal. Trunks wipe a dribble of blood from the corner of his mouth and glared at his opponent. Kogu decided to stop toying with his prey and drew his sword. Shouting a battle cry, he charged at Trunks with his sword ready to cleave his in two. A whistling sound alerted Trunks to an item flying at his back at high speed. Ducking under the sword strike, Trunks caught the item thrown at him and discovered his own sword in his hand.

Closing his eyes, Trunks waited for Kogu to charge again before popping his eyes open and unsheathing his sword in the blink of an eye. Kogu appeared several yards away with a shocked expression as he watched his sword shatter and a thin red line appear across his chest. The air grew still and the light in the area dimmed dramatically as Kogu's top half separated from his lower and he fell over dead. Trunks flung the blood off his sword with the flick of his wrist and looked up to the sky and nodded his thanks to his father floating above the scene.

Vegeta landed and addressed his son. "This was one of Bojack's crew. He should be somewhere nearby. You handle his lackeys and I'll take Bojack on myself. Where is Kakarot's brat?"

"He is still back on the ship that brought us here, he had to fight in the junior league." Trunks explained somewhat embarrassed for his friend.

Vegeta barked out a laugh. "Ha! So Kakabrat's able to defeat the strongest foes in the universe, but he's not allowed to fight because of his age? This is too rich!" Shaking his head, Vegeta chuckled. "Alright, let's go take out the trash."

 **-Skybox-**

"Mr Satan! We desperately need you! Someone was just murdered on screen, and a patrol just found the bodies of your students that were supposed to take on the challengers in a dumpster on the island. You must come out to save the day! We are all counting on you!" X.S pleaded while pounding on the bathroom door. Hercule, for his part, was trying to sneak out the window so he could try and escape to his private airplane. Unfortunately for him, his host had called maintenance to come unlock the door. They came in found Hercule stuck halfway out the window. "Someone help him! He must have been stuck in here and was looking for any way to get out there to save us all!" X.S. surmised.

Two porters hauled a crying Hercule out of the window and dragged him out to a waiting rocket pod. Accepting his fate, Hercule wiped the tears off his face and faced his fans with as much bravado as he could muster. He attempted to laugh victoriously, but it sounded more like crying as he was shoved into the pod and launched to what he believed was his doom.

 **Merry Christmas to all my readers. Next chapter will be the fight with the rest of the galactic pirates and the aftermath. I hope everyone enjoyed the changes I made to the fights. Until next time, thanks for reading.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for the wait. Here's the next chapter. Here is the main battle with a bit of a twist at the end.**

Trunks and Vegeta followed the unfamiliar ki signatures to a large abandoned city within the volcano. Both father and son were in their super Saiyan states flying through the air carefully scanning the area for traps or enemies.

Trunks was the first to spot Yamaha and Krillin's unconscious forms laying on the ground. "Father, Down there!" Changing directions, Trunks sped toward the unconscious fighters.

"Trunks, wait!" Vegeta tried to warn. Suddenly two figures appeared from an alleyway and ensnared Trunks in psychic threads. Trunks shouted out when the threads started draining his energy. Bido flew out of a nearby building and started charging a ki blast. Vegeta launched a blast from both hands, one at the large man charging his blast and the other at the small man in the robes that seemed to be controlling the threads.

Multiple green energy blasts intercepted Vegeta's attacks causing Vegeta to stop and glare at the newcomer. Trunks shouting drew Vegeta's attention back just as Bido's blast stuck home. Trunks' hair reverted back to his standard lavender as he lost consciousness.

Vegeta could feel that his son's energy was not in any imminent danger, so he turned back to face the person that had disrupted his attacks. The wind blew his long orange hair as he floated in the air with a confident smirk plastered on his face.

 **-Line Break-**

"Oh dear, this is not good. Not good at all." North Kai said when he turned his attention to the massive ki spike that he just felt.

"Hmm?" Goku popped his head out of the Kai's hut when he heard King Kai muttering to himself. "Hey, King Kai. What's up?"

"Nothing good, Goku. I just felt a strong ki appear on Earth. The space pirate, Bojack, and his crew have escaped their imprisonment and are now on Earth." King Kai explained.

Goku put this hand on King Kai's shoulder and focused on the energy signature. "Don't worry, King Kai. He's nowhere near as powerful as Cell was. Gohan can handle them easily."

"I sure hope you're right, Goku. I sure hope you're right." King Kai said solemnly.

 **-Line Break-**

Goan had just finished checking over the man-made battle island. Satisfied that it was clear for now, he was just about to take off to assist Vegeta and Trunks when a familiar ki made itself known. Smiling, Gohan turned towards his former Sensei and smiled. "Hey, Piccolo."

"Hey, kid." Piccolo returned the greeting. Looking to the island, Piccolo spoke up. "I have a bad feeling about these fighters. I don't think we've seen all they're capable of yet."

Turning serious, Gohan nodded in agreement. Flaring their auras both fighters took flight to confront the threat.

 **-Line Break-**

Hercule curled himself into a ball a wept silently as he watched the launch timer quickly countdown to zero. With a very undignified scream, he was sent hurtling down the chute that he was certain that would lead to his doom.

 **-Line Break-**

Powering up Vegeta launched himself at Bojack. He quickly dove under Bujin's psychic threads and spun to face the diminutive enemy. With an irritated grunt, he fired a large energy blast at Bijun only to see it get swatted away by Bido's timely arrival. Zangya was holding back to ensure none of the unconscious fighters came to and tried to flank her comrades.

Bujin smirked and flung his threads out in another attempt to ensnare Vegeta. They never reached their target.

"Special Beam Cannon!" A purple and gold spiral of energy struck Bujin in the chest and punched a basketball-sized hole through the cloaked fighter. Bido spotted Piccolo floating in the air with his arm outstretched. With a battle cry, he charged at the Namekian, a red ball of ki forming in his hand.

Bido never reached Piccolo. He was intercepted by a flash of golden light as Gohan slammed his fist into the large Hera's face, launching him through a nearby building. Piccolo and Gohan exchanged smirks before Gohan chased after Bido and Piccolo went to check on the fallen Z-Fighters and challenge Zangya if she tried to interfere.

Vegeta refocused on Bojack who had not moved and was still wearing his confident smirk, although if you looked closely, you'd see a hint of irritation in his eyes at the defeat of his lackey.

"I've always heard the claimed fierceness of the Saiyans in battle. I think I'll put those claims to the test." Bojack said as he assumed his fighting stance. Vegeta scowled as he observed Bojack's demeanor.

'He isn't taking me seriously.' Vegeta fired off a ki blast as he flew at Bojack who just batted the blast away. Closing in Vegeta laid in with a flurry of punches and kicks which his opponent either blocked or dodged before throwing punches and kicks off his own. Vegeta was able to avoid most of the blows while connecting with a few of his own. Blocking a feint, Vegeta was caught by a powerful kick to the stomach and was sent rocketing into a building. Before he could recover Bojack rained down multiple green energy blasts on the building collapsing it on the Saiyan Prince.

Bojack leaned back just barely avoiding a slash from Trunks' sword. Rotating his body, Bojack landed a vicious kick to Trunks' ribs blasting him away just as Vegeta blasted the rubble away from himself with a burst of energy.

Gohan fired an energy blast at Bido who quickly dodged out of the way and launched several blasts back at Gohan. Gohan weaved his way around all the blasts and aimed a kick at Bido's head. Bido ducked and threw a flurry of punches at Gohan who had to go on the defensive. Bido overextended when his fist passed straight through an afterimage of Gohan. He was sent flying toward the ground when the demi-Saiyan kicked him in the back of the head.

With a loud cry and a surge of power, Bido transformed, his skin changing from teal to deep green and his mohawk bleeding to red. Smirking, Bido used his now enhanced speed to shoot past Gohan and deliver an elbow to the back of his head. Speeding past the falling Gohan, Bido launched the young warrior back into the air with a vicious kick to the abdomen. Slipping past Gohan once again, Bido caught him in a bear hug and started squeezing.

 **-Other World-**

"Oh no! Gohan's in trouble!" Shouted King Kai. Goku rushed over and placed his hand on the Kai's shoulder and was just about to call out to his son when Gohan ascended to Super Saiyan 2.

 **-With Gohan-**

Gohan struggled to escape Bido's grasp but could not find the leverage to do so. 'Damn it, I guess I'll have to rely on that form again.' Throwing his head back, Gohan let out a scream as his power skyrocketed.

Bido's confident smirk morphed into a frown as he struggled to maintain his grip on the boy. How could this boy have so much power? It actually rivaled Bojack's, and it was still growing! Suddenly in a flash of light, Bido lost his grip and was blown back a good distance. When his eyes were finally able to focus again, he was shocked to see the mere boy he had been fighting. His spiked golden hair was fully standing on end and bolts of bioelectricity sparked all around his body. Determined to not be intimidated, Bido charged at the freshly powered up half Saiyan.

Gohan's frown depended as Bido closed on him. Ducking under a haymaker he slammed his fist into Bido's gut knocking the wind out of him. He followed up with a powerful uppercut and grabbed Bido's for before he was able to fly away. Spinning quickly, Gohan launched Bido at the ground and cupped his hands together at his side. "Kaa..Me..Haaa..Me…...HA!" The blue beam of energy quickly caught up with the falling Hera and vaporized him before he could react.

With Bido out of the way, Gohan looked for the next threat. Zangya was lying unconscious near Krillin and Yamcha and their leader, Bojack, was engaged with both Trunks and Vegeta. Gohan flew over to his mentor and saw that Zangya was in fact still alive. Trunks suddenly slammed into the ground half a block away creating a large crater. Trunks stood up and shook his head to clear the fog and looked back into the sky where he had just been fighting with Bojack. Gohan followed his gaze and his frown had deepened. Bojack's skin was now a deep green with crimson hair and he was engaged with Vegeta who seemed to have gone on the defensive.

Both fighters paused momentarily when a hysterical scream echoed out of a rocket tube. Within moments the rocket pod carrying Mr. Satan shot from the tube and flew over everyone's heads. Irritated with the interruption, both Bojack and Vegeta turned and unleashed energy blasts at the pod. Just before the green and gold orbs made contact, Gohan used Instant Transmission to grab Mr. Satan out of the pod. He quickly focused on a rooftop some distance away. Focusing his energy, Gohan silently prayed that this worked. In an instant he and Mr. Satan were well away from the explosion as both of the energy attacks detonated on the pod, only he had missed the rooftop by over thirty feet and he held a struggling and whimpering Hercule five stories above the ground. He quickly landed and disentangled himself from the frightened man's grip.

"Tsk. The idiot still lives." Vegeta scoffed.

"Was that your idea of backup?" Bojack asked sarcastically.

"Hmph! As if. That moron can't even function as a decent distraction. Now, where were we?" Leaping back into the fray, it didn't take long before Bojack overpowered Vegeta and knocked him through one the few buildings left standing in their vicinity. Bojack ducked under a roundhouse kick from Trunks who had powered up to super-Saiyan stage two.

Gohan was just about to take off to help fight against Bojack when he felt someone grab his wrist. Turning back he saw a scared Mr. Satan. "Look Mr. Satan, there are plenty of places to take cover, I need to go help Trunks and Vegeta."

"Umm, sure kid. I umm...I just wanted to know i-if there were any umm hard feelings, umm, about….about me taking cr-credit for beating Cell? Hercule stammered.

Gohan sighed. "No, I don't care that you took the credit. We, my friends and family and I don't care about the recognition. I would prefer it if you would stop with public ridicule of our powers though. Look," Gohan looked back just in time to see Trunks get swatted away again. "I really need to get over there. If you want, we can talk about this later."

"Umm…. sure kid." Gohan nodded and blasted away in a flash of golden light. Bojack was charging up a powerful blast to fire at Trunks when Gohan attempted to land a punch on his face. Bojack ducked and swiveled firing the green energy orb at Gohan as he flew over. Gohan teleported out of the way of the blast but could not slow down enough to avoid slamming into a partially destroyed wall.

'I really need to get this technique down.' Gohan groaned internally as he dusted himself off. Charging back into the battle, Vegeta had already recovered and was trading blows with the super-Hera. Trunks rejoined the fight as well moments later. Gohan could see Piccolo charging up another special beam cannon waiting for the right moment to fire. He had just relocated Krillin and Yamcha a safe distance away so they would not be caught up in any collateral damage.

First Trunks then Vegeta were knocked away from the fight leaving Gohan to continue by himself for the moment. Sensing Piccolo's attack ready to fire, Gohan dodged leaving a perfect opening for the oncoming gold and purple beam. Bojack produced a green shield that protected him from Piccolo's attack. Quickly expanding the shield, Bojack was able to shove Trunks, Vegeta, and Gohan far enough out of the way to fire a green blast at Piccolo who was almost unable to avoid the attack. Trunks was the first to recover and tried to land a kick on the powerful opponent but Bojack caught his ankle and after two spins threw Trunks toward the ground and followed up with a powerful blast that slammed into the time traveler. When the smoke cleared trunks was at the bottom of a large crater with his hair reverted back to is natural lavender color.

Vegeta had just emerged from the rubble of a collapsed building just in time to see the attack land with a massive explosion. He could feel how weak his son was after the attack, but he seemed stable otherwise. Watching Gohan start trading blows with the space criminal, Vegeta clenched his fists. He was the Prince of the Saiyans, he was the last full-blooded Saiyan left alive. How was he so outclassed by this halfbreed of a third class idiot? Watching as his rival's progeny landed several powerful blows to Bojack, Vegeta felt something within himself snap. With a pained scream, Vegeta allowed himself to be swallowed by his rage as his power skyrocketed.

Surprised by the sudden surge of power from Vegeta, Gohan gave Bojack just enough time to charge a green ki blast and fire it at close range. Gohan crossed his arms in front of himself to block the attack but was blown back a considerable distance to the detonation. Vegeta flew up in front of Bojack and shot Gohan a look that said stay out of this, this was his fight. Bioelectricity arcing all over his body, Vegeta caught Bojack's fist without even looking. Scowling as he turned back to the fight, Vegeta landed several quick kicks to the Hera's ribs before he could get away. Bojack focused his energy into his right hand that started glowing green. Thrusting his fist forward, it passed straight through an after image. Eyes widening in shock, time seemed to slow down as his gaze drifted down to see a smirk form on Vegeta's lips as the Saiyan Prince had dodged down and had placed both of his hands palm out on Bojack's chest. Golden light flashed rapidly from both palms as two shafts of light blasted through Bojack's back. The shock in his eyes ebbed away as the life drained from Bojack's eyes and his hair and skin returned to their original shades. Bojack's now lifeless body fell to the ground as Vegeta stared in wonder at his clenched fist. Bioelectricity still arced around him as the realization hit him that he had ascended finally. Finally, he had reached the pinnacle of power, a power beyond what Kakarot had ever reached. But it still felt somewhat empty. What was the point of achieving this new level if he could not gloat and shove it in that idiot's face? Powering down to the first level of super-Saiyan, Vegeta sent out a silent curse to his rival for not coming back so he could kick his ass properly. Settling down in the crater his son was in, Vegeta picked Trunks up and flew off back to Capsule Corp.

Gohan watched as Vegeta flew away with Trunks understanding the mix of emotions he saw flash across the Prince's face just moments before. "Damn it, Dad. Why couldn't you have just come back?" Gohan powered down and rejoined with Piccolo who was standing near where Krillin and Yamcha were just starting to recover from being knocked out. Piccolo was glaring at a shaking Zangya as he decided how to deal with the Hera female. Gohan landed and looked her over noticing the fear in her eyes.

"Please spare me." She pleaded as she bowed her head with tears in her eyes. Yamcha looked over at the teal skinned female and felt something stir in him.

"Hey guys, I don't see why we have to destroy her. Let's give her a chance. If she steps out of line then we can deal with her then. It's not like she's as strong as her boss was after all." Yamcha stated on her behalf. Zangya looked up at him with confusion.

"Why? Why would you help me?" She asked the former bandit.

Yamcha blushed a bit and looked away. "Well, umm... I guess because you had a chance to kill us and you didn't, so maybe you aren't all bad." "And you are really beautiful." He said the last part quietly hoping no one heard him even though everyone did.

"Whatever. She's your responsibility then." Piccolo huffed. "See you, kid." Piccolo said to Gohan before he flew off back to the Lookout.

"Hey Krillin, how are you?" Gohan asked the monk.

"I'll be fine, just a bit sore for now." Krillin responded.

Yamcha walked over to Zangya and offered her a hand up. "Hehe, umm, My name is Yamcha."

She looked at his hand cautiously for a moment before accepting the hand up. "I'm Zangya. I'm grateful for you saving me."

"Hehe, yeah, it was nothing." Yamcha chuckled nervously. "Umm...if-if you don't have anywhere to stay, umm, you could stay with me until we can get you settled."

Zangya considered her options. She was the last of her kind and she had nowhere else to go. She doubted she would receive any assistance away from this group, but she was still nervous that they might change their minds or that they were just trying to get her to drop her guard. In the end she decided she really didn't have anything to lose by accepting.

"Hey Gohan, I'm beat. Can you handle the rest here?" Krillin asked.

"Yeah, I've got it. See you guys later." With that Krillin, Yamcha, and Zangya flew off leaving just Gohan and a hiding Mr. Satan alone in the ruined battlefield. Seeking out Hercule's Ki signature, Gohan found the afroed man quickly. "It's safe to come out now, Mr. Satan." Gohan called out. An afro and a pair of eyes appeared over a pile of rubble and blinked a few times. Slowly he came out of his hiding spot and approached the young golden-haired boy.

"So, umm, where are all the others?" Hercule asked nervously.

"Bojack and his crew have been eliminated and the others just left a few minutes ago." Gohan answered.

"Oh, I see. Umm, Thanks kid, for umm, saving me and all." Hercule said uneasily. "So….you really weren't here just to take credit for the whole Cell thing?"

"No, I don't really want all the attention. I just entered for the prize money. My mom just had my brother and money is a bit tight." Gohan answered honestly.

"Is that all? I'm sure I can help there. I don't think that there will be any prize money coming from this tournament, but I have more than enough from after the Cell fiasco. I, umm...guess that would rightfully be your money." Hercule offered.

"I don't know if my mom will accept that. She is a really proud woman and won't even accept help from her own family, but since it is kind of from the Cell games, maybe she will relent this once."

"So what are those tricks that you use?" Hercule asked, not noticing the grimace on Gohan's face at the term 'tricks'.

"First of all, they are not tricks. They are ki abilities."

"Hmph, my master said that ki was just a bunch of hocus-pocus mumbo-jumbo." Hercule interrupted with a scoff.

Gohan shook his head at how obtuse the older man was being. "All of our abilities are ki based, Mr. Satan. Just look around you for the proof."

"Mark."

"Huh?" Gohan asked confused.

"You can call me Mark." Mr. Satan offered.

"I thought that your name was Hercule?"

"That is just my stage persona. My real name is Mark." He explained.

"Oh, okay. My name is Gohan. Son Gohan." Gohan extended his hand and Hercule shook it.

"Son…. I've heard that family name somewhere before. What is your father's name?" Hercule asked.

"His name was Son Goku." Gohan replied sadly.

Hercule looked surprised at that revelation. "He was the former WMAT champion before me. Where is he…." Hercule trailed off as he remembered seeing the golden-haired man that vanished with Cell but never returned. "Never mind, sorry I asked."

"He thought that the Earth would be safer if he didn't return this time. Ha! Some good that did." Gohan could feel his emotions acting up again until he felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up at the normally boisterous man, he saw sympathy in his eyes.

"I'm sure he did what he did out of love for you. Sometimes choices made out of love are clouded and don't turn out how they were intended."

Gohan could not hold back the tears as he considered those words. Maybe he wasn't a complete disappointment after all. Thank you, Mr. Sat- Mark. I need to get going now, I'm sure my mom is worried sick." Hercule asked for some information in order to offer some financial help and Gohan floated into the air and was about to fly off when Hercule stopped him one more time.

"So what do I tell everyone about what happened here?"

Gohan smiled. "I'm sure you can come up with something. Good news is that with all the energy released all the cameras were destroyed." With that Gohan took off for his house and hoped his mom would be in an understanding mood.

 **I'm going to end the chapter here for now. I know it is a little shorter than usual and I'm sorry about that. I hope that everyone enjoyed the fight and the few little twists that I added. Next chapter will have some time skips getting us closer to the start of the High school arc. I need to finish my next chapter of Tides of Change before I can get to the next chapter here. Thank you for your patience and thank you for reading.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello again, back with a new chapter. This is mainly a transitional chapter to get us closer to Gohan going to high school. Next chapter will be the start of the high school arc.**

Gohan flew back to his home near Capsule Corp in West City. He landed just outside the front door and reached for the door handle when the door flew open and he was embraced by his mother. "Oh, my baby! Are you okay? I was so scared!"

"Mom, I'm fine, I promise." Gohan assured his mother while she checked him all over. Satisfied that he was not seriously injured she drew him into another tight embrace. "That's it, mister, your fighting days are over.

Gohan pushed himself away from his mother so he could look into her eyes. "No, mother. This proves that dad was wrong. There is always going to be threats to the world. I can't walk away now, I have to do everything I can to keep the planet safe, that way I can keep you and Goten safe. Dad left this duty to me, and I must continue his legacy." Gohan stated with determination.

"But what about your studies?"

"I promised you before and I still plan to uphold that promise now; I will balance my training with my studies. Just because I plan on protecting the planet doesn't mean I cannot work on being a scholar as well. By the same token, why does being a scholar mean I cannot protect those that I can?" Gohan reasoned.

"But…." Chi-Chi started to argue.

"Mother, I cannot just sit by while others are in danger."

*sigh* "You really are your father's son. Fine, but you better keep up your studies mister." Chi-Chi relented. Taking a step towards their house, Chi-Chi nearly collapsed only to be caught by Gohan.

"Mother! Are you alright?" Gohan asked worriedly.

"I-I'm okay. I just need to sit down for a minute."

"You shouldn't push yourself so hard. You still have not regained all your strength." Gohan helped his mother inside their house and sat her down on the couch. He heard Goten start fussing upstairs and left his mother to check on his brother. He appeared a few minutes later holding the little boy that bore a striking resemblance to their father. He handed Goten to their mother as he went to the kitchen to prepare a bottle for the tike.

That night Gohan lay in his bed unable to sleep. Everything since the end of the Cell Games replaying through his head. He knew what he had to do and he knew where he could go to achieve his goal. He had to become stronger, he needed to master his Super Saiyan 2 transformation. Looking around his room, he started packing. He wrote a quick note to his mother and a second for Bulma. Opening a window he flew over to the Capsule Corp main building and left the second note where he knew Bulma would find it. He wouldn't be gone long, but no sense in making the people he cared for worry more than necessary. His task done, he took off and flew into the night.

Chi-Chi awoke in the morning and poked her head in to check on Gohan. She sucked in her breath when she saw the room bare. Every book that had lined the walls was gone and all his training gis were gone as well. She felt herself begin to panic when she saw the note on the desk

 _Dear Mother,_

 _Please don't worry about me. I know what I need to do to become stronger, to become the protector of the Earth like Dad wanted. He was wrong about one thing though. Just because he is gone does not mean that powerful threats will not come to Earth looking for him, the Intergalactic Tournament showed me that. I have gone to Kami's Lookout to use the Chamber of Space and Time to master my powers. I have taken all my study materials with me so I can keep up with my studies as I promised. I will only be gone for a day, so I will be back before you realize it. I have also let Bulma know my plans so she can help you out while I am gone. Please take care and don't overwork yourself._

 _Love your son, Gohan_

Chi-Chi couldn't help the tear that ran down her face. 'My little boy is growing up. Oh Goku, he is too young to have to make decisions like this. How I wish you were here. You would be so proud of him.' Clutching the note to her chest Chi-Chi eased her way to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for herself.

 **-Line Break-**

Gohan was currently attempting to meditate while sitting in his Super Saiyan 2 state. It was difficult to focus while the rage echoed in his mind. He knew that the first step of master his transformation would be to control the rage that came with the ascension. Sighing in frustration, he uncapsulated his books. Maybe he could distract himself with his studies. Browsing through the selection of titles, he figured that he could almost have a college degree by the time he finished his training. Suddenly a title caught his eye. It drew his attention like a beacon, but he had no idea why. "The Manual of the Warrior of the Light?" Curious, he carefully opened the book and flipped through a few pages. Suddenly he froze on one page. He reread the page several times before he realized that the rage in his mind had faded.

 _Every warrior of light has felt afraid of going into battle._

 _Every warrior of light has, at some time in the past, lied or betrayed someone._

 _Every warrior of light has trodden a path that was not his._

 _Every warrior of light has suffered for the most trivial of reasons._

 _Every warrior of light has, at least once, believed that he was not a warrior of light._

 _Every warrior of light has failed in his spiritual duties._

 _Every warrior of light has said 'yes' when he wanted to say 'no'._

 _Every warrior of light has hurt someone he loved. That is why he is a warrior of light, because he has been through all this and yet has never lost hope of being better than he is. (1)_

This was him, he was a warrior of the light. He felt as though a massive weight had been lifted off him. Turning back to the beginning, he began to read the book that would change his life. When he finished reading through all the passages, he closed his eyes and was able to calm his mind and focus on the task he had set before himself. He would take what he had read to heart and become the man that he knew his father had seen in him when he passed the proverbial torch to him. By the time his time in the Chamber had come to an end, he had accomplished what he wanted and now it was time to head home.

Piccolo was meditating while Mr. Popo watered the plants on the lookout when the door to the Chamber of Space and Time opened and Gohan emerged. The power that radiated from the entry overwhelmed Piccolo's senses for a moment before it disappeared just as fast. A blonde Gohan walked out onto the terrace and closed his eyes as he basked in the fresh air. He was obviously in his ascended state, but without the bio-electricity arcing around him.

"Gohan? Is that you?" Dende asked as he stepped out of his quarters and saw his friend standing there with a gentle smile on his face.

'That power he gave off, I can feel it swirling just under the surface, but it is no longer raging. It feels as though I'm standing next to an ocean. It's so calm, yet…' Piccolo could not finish that thought. "Hey kid, how are you feeling?" He asked.

Gohan took in a deep breath and opened his eyes. "I am feeling better than I have in a very long time, Piccolo." Breathing out slowly, Gohan dropped to his base Super Saiyan state before finally dropping the transformation altogether. Turning to Dende and Mr. Popo, Gohan gave a slight bow. "Thank you for allowing me to use the Chamber again."

"It's no problem, Gohan. I'm glad you were able to find what you were looking for." Dende responded.

"The book was from you, wasn't it?" Gohan asked.

"Yes. I thought that it might be of some help to you." Dende confirmed. "I'm happy to see that I was right."

"I need to get home now, my mom is probably going crazy with worry. See you guys later!" Gohan ran to the edge of the lookout and leapt off.

"Bye Gohan!" Dende called out.

"That boy never ceases to amaze me." Mr. Popo said before resuming his gardening.

"To be able to control that much power without allowing it to control him." Piccolo said. 'Gohan, just how powerful are you going to become?'

Gohan allowed himself to freefall for several moments before taking flight and heading towards West City and his home where he knew his mother was waiting for him.

 **====Time Skip====**

Videl was not in a good mood. In fact, she was pissed, more pissed than she had ever been before. Pissed and confused. She had just turned fifteen the other day and her father decided to drop a bombshell on her.

-Flashback-

"Hey, Videl? SweetPea?" Mark "Hercule" Satan knocked on his daughter's door.

She opened the door with a confused look. "What's up, Dad?" He didn't normally knock on her door unless it was something important. He usually had one of the servants deliver any messages to her. Looking around, she noticed the house was abnormally quiet. "Where is everyone?"

"I gave them the rest of the day off." Hercule answered. "I have something I need to talk to you about. Something that I didn't want anyone else to hear."

Now Videl was really confused. What could be such a massive secret that he would send the staff home to ensure privacy? "Umm, Dad, What is it?"

Hercule cleared his throat as he entered her room. "Videl, I have to tell you something very important. I wanted to wait till you were old enough and I believe you are ready to hear one of my deepest secrets."

Videl felt her stomach clench. What secret could drive her normally boisterous dad into looking this nervous? She sat down on the edge of her bed as she watched him pace back a forth a few times.

"Videl….I am not the one who defeated Cell." Hercule admitted. He had tried to think of a way to break the news gently, but in the end decided that he should just come out and say it.

"WHATTT!" Videl screamed. Her father lied? He didn't defeat Cell? How could he lie to the world like that? How could he lie to her? "B-but I don't understand! The press, the fame…. Our lives are based on a lie?!" She was nearly hyperventilating by now.

"It was the delivery boy, Videl. He was the true hero that day. He is the one that defeated that monster."

"But those were just light tricks and staged explosions! You said so yourself."

Hercule sighed. He knew that she would not react well, but he knew deep in his heart that he could not keep lying to her like he had. The delivery boy, Son Gohan, was still out there and he would rather her learn about it from him than being uncovered one day in the future. He knew that would drive her away from him forever and he couldn't lose her. "Those 'tricks' were real. I have no idea how, but somehow he and the others there could use those powers."

"What about at the Tournament?" Videl asked. She needed to know how deep the lies went.

"That was a lie as well. The delivery boy showed up and he along with a few others beat those aliens. Yes, they really were aliens." Hercule confirmed her suspicions.

"I-I don't know what to feel." Videl said, her mind racing. Her dad stepped over to hug her, but she pushed him away. "I-I need some time, I need to get some fresh air." Videl walked out of the room and out the front door after slipping on some shoes.

-Flashback End-

Videl had been walking for a couple of hours now. Her head was still swimming and her emotions were a rollercoaster. He life was based on a lie. All their wealth and fame belonged to another. Why didn't the delivery boy come forward? Had her father paid him to keep silent? Who was the delivery boy?

Videl had just turned a street corner when she heard a commotion.

"Release your hostage and place your weapon on the ground!" A police officer demanded while a masked man held a young woman hostage. Neither man had noticed her as she silently approached the scene. Seeing an opening, Videl charged in and quickly disarmed the assailant and knocked him unconscious before he could react. "Hey, kid! What do you think…." The police officer started to yell at Videl before recognizing her. Just then another police car arrived and the chief stepped out.

"What the hell is going on here?" He bellowed as he took in the scene. Videl walked up rubbing her arm nervously. "Miss Satan?"

"Hi, Chief Gyaosu." He was a fairly short man with a balding head and a mustache that crossed his face. He narrowed his eyes as Videl approached. "I was out for a walk when I heard the commotion and wanted to see if I could help. I saw an opening and took it."

"Miss Videl, what you did was very reckless, you could have injured yourself or the hostage with your little stunt. I'm going to look the other way this time because you are the daughter of the savior of the world, but we can't have you placing yourself or anyone else in jeopardy just because you acted on a whim. Leave the police work to the professionals." Chief Gyaosu said sternly.

Videl quickly considered her options. It had felt good to be involved, to help take down that criminal. Maybe she could find a way to work with the police and help atone for the guilt she felt knowing her father's lie. "Chief Gyaosu, please, is there any way I could work with the police? I want to be able to contribute to my city and would love to be able to help out where I can. I know that my skills would be a benefit to your forces, so please, let me help." Videl asked with a bow.

The chief stroked his mustache as he considered it. "Miss Satan, I appreciate the offer, but I just don't feel right asking a teenage girl to put her life at risk doing the work of adults."

Videl felt a wave of disappointment. She decided to talk to her dad about this and get him to convince the chief to allow her to help. After she said her goodbyes, she marched straight home to talk to her father.

"Dad!" Videl called out as she arrived at their palatial home.

"SweetPea?" Hercule responded cautiously. He had not expected her back so soon. Maybe she was taking better than he had hoped.

"Dad, I want you to get me on the police force. I know you have contacts in the city." Videl insisted.

"But SweetPea…." Hercule started till he was interrupted.

"Don't SweetPea me, Dad. I know what I am doing. I can help clean up this city, and it is a way I can make up for your lies." Videl said pointedly.

Hercule sighed. He knew that he could not win this fight. He retrieved his phone and looked up his contact in City Hall. Maybe he could get her on in an office position, something a little less dangerous. "Hey, Dale….Yeah, it's Mark….I need to call in that favor you owe me…."

 **-Line Break-**

There was a festive mood in the atmosphere around Capsule Corp today. It was Gohan's 15th birthday and for the first time since the end of the Cell Games all the Z-Fighters had gathered in one place. Even Vegeta took some time away from his training to make an appearance.

Gohan saw Yamcha arrive with the teal skinned Hera, Zangya. She looked rather uncomfortable being around the people she and her former crew fought against at the Intergalactic Tournament. Gohan was one of the first to approach the couple.

"Hey, Yamcha! How's it going?" Gohan greeted the former desert bandit. "Umm, Zangya, right? How are you adjusting?"

"Hey Gohan, happy birthday, kid. How's life as a teenager?" Yamcha returned the greeting, putting his arm around Gohan's shoulders and ruffling his hair.

Zangya looked around uncomfortably at all the Z Fighters mingling amicably. It had taken her over a year to venture outdoors after Yamcha had taken her in before she could begin to relax. It took a while to come to terms that she was the last of her kind and Bojack was truly gone for good.

While Zangya knew that she was safe from attack from the Z-Fighters, she was still doubtful that she would be accepted by them, even though Yamcha assured her that wouldn't be a problem. He explained to her that most of the group had actually been enemies at one point or another. Looking around now, she couldn't imagine any of them being so, well except for maybe Vegeta, he didn't seem to get along with anybody.

Returning her gaze to Gohan, she offered him a shy smile before answering. "I'm doing good. Yamcha has been really helpful getting me accustomed to living on this planet."

"That's good to hear." Gohan smiled as Yamcha rubbed the back of his head and grinned.

"I want to thank you for sparing me when you had every right to end me." Zangya said with a slight bow.

"Think nothing of it." Gohan said bashfully. "I could feel the good in you. Besides, my dad believed in giving people second chances, and I want to continue that legacy."

"Hey Gohan, how's it going?" Krillin called out as he joined the group.

"Hahaha! Is that you, Krillin?" Yamcha laughed at Krillin's appearance. "Almost didn't recognize you with that mop on your head."

"Hey! It's my natural hair I'll have you know. And my wife thinks that it looks good on me.". Krillin defended himself.

"Wife? Who would marry you?" Yamcha teased.

"I would." Replied a child voice behind Yamcha. Turning slowly, Yamcha gulped when he saw the owner of that voice.

"Hey 18, glad you could make it." Gohan smiled brightly. The blonde Android 18 was holding a small blonde girl in her arms.

"Happy birthday, kid." 18 spared a small smile for Gohan before returning her attention back to the former bandit. "Now what were you saying to my husband?"

"I-I'm sorry!" Yamcha apologized quickly before rushing away leaving Zangya alone and confused.

18 shook her head. "Sorry about that, I'm 18." She extended her free hand to the teal skinned woman.

Zangya cautiously took the offered hand. "I'm Zangya, nice to meet you."

"Where's Master Roshi?" Gohan asked.

"The old pervert decided to get a little handsy." 18 nodded back toward the jetcopter they had arrived in. Laid out on the ground with a large lump on his head was Master Roshi. Turning back to Zangya. "Word of advice, if the old letch touches you, feel free to pummel him."

"Don't be that way, 18." The old master said suddenly appearing behind Zangya. "Hehe. Hello there." Master Roshi chuckled as he groped Zangya's backside. Startled, she let out a yelp and spun around to face her molester. "You wouldn't hit a feeble old man nearing the end of his days, would you?" Master Roshi smiled innocently.

Zangya wasn't quite sure what to make of this old man so looked to 18. 18 rolled her eyes and shook her head in exasperation. Zangya could tell by her expression that this wasn't the first time the old codger had pulled this stunt. Giving him a sweet smile, Zangya cocked back her diet and sent the Turtle Hermit flying with a devastating punch. 18 watched the old man sail to the far end of the compound and smirked at the Hera. "Heh, I like your style. I think we'll get along just fine." 18 lead Zangya away as they began to chat and get to know each other.

"Man, you'd think Roshi would learn by now." Krillin said shaking his head. Gohan was about to comment when two blurs shot past him, cowering behind his legs. Goten and trunks were obviously running from trouble.

"He's going to kill us, big brother!" Goten said shaking.

"Brats!" Vegeta shouted as he stalked up to where they were hiding. "Out of the way Kakabrat!"

"What's going on over here?" Bulma demanded as she and Chi-Chi approached causing both boys to blanch. Vegeta turned and shot them a withering gaze. He was visibly drenched and red faced. Bulma and Chi-Chi turned their scowls on the two children hiding behind the birthday boy.

"Umm….Dad looked like he was hot….and umm…. We had seen a new challenge video online where someone gets a bucket of ice water poured on them, and well….umm….it wouldn't have been so bad if Goten didn't drop the bucket after pouring it on him!" Six year old Trunks stammered.

"It slipped! You should have been helping me instead of holding that camera!" Five year old Goten defended.

"Boys!" Both mothers shouted at the same time.

"Come on, Trunks. We're heading to the Gravity Room." Vegeta stated as he grabbed his son's arm. Looking at Goten, he scowled. "Brat, you're lucky you're not my offspring or you'd be in for a hard round of training."

"That might do him some good." Chi-Chi said catching everyone off guard. "Maybe it will teach him a lesson."

"B-but mom…!" Goten started.

"Don't but Mom me, mister. You're old enough to start some training and maybe this will teach you to not follow Trunks does, or else you will suffer the same punishment.

Goten was excited at the prospect of getting to start training, but then he remembered he had a pissed off Vegeta as a teacher. Vegeta for his part flashed him a cruel smirk. Gohan grabbed Vegeta's sleeve. "I'll come by in a little bit to get in a round myself."

"No sir! Not today you won't. I won't allow you to abandon your guests just to get some training in." Chi-Chi turned her scowl on her eldest son.

"Y-yes, ma'am." Gohan quickly relented. "Guess I'll have to take a rain check on that spar, Vegeta."

"Hmph, whatever. Come on, boys." Vegeta dragged both boys away towards the complex.

A little later Vegeta came back to the party with two exhausted demi-saiyans trailing behind him. They arrived just in time for lunch. After everyone had eaten their fill, Yamcha surprised everyone by standing up and clearing his throat.

Once everyone had their attention on him, Yamcha laughed nervously. "Hehe, I umm….have an announcement. I know that this is Gohan's birthday and all, and I'm not trying to take anything away from his time to shine but…."

"Just get on with it already!" Vegeta barked.

"Umm….yeah, well, I wanted to let everyone know that I asked Zangya to marry me, and she said yes!" Yamcha finally said while holding his fiance's hand. "And everyone is invited to the wedding." A round of congratulations were passed around by most of the people present while Zangya blushed lightly at all the attention.

After the excitement of Yamcha's announcement had calmed down, it was time for Gohan to open his presents. Krillin and 18 had gotten him a few outfits from a designer label, Bulma gave him a new cell phone, Yamcha and Tien had given him gift cards. Piccolo and Dende didn't have a gift for him, but Gohan didn't mind. His mother gave him a new computer with the latest learning software already installed. He thanked everyone for their gifts and sat down to try and figure out the phone Bulma had given him.

"Gohan, do you have a minute?" A large man in a flannel shirt and pants held up with suspenders asked.

"Sure, Grandpa Ox. What do you need?"

"Gohan, I need to discuss something really important with you." The Ox King said.

"Gohan put the phone down and followed his grandfather away from the group. When they were alone, he sat down heavily. "Gohan, I'm getting older…."

"You're not that old, Grandpa." Gohan insisted.

The Ox King smiled at his grandson. "I still need to address the issue of a successor. Chi doesn't want the throne, and Goten….well, Goten is too much like your father. I just don't see him being able to fill the seat. So, can I ask you to take over when I am gone? You are smart and fair, you would make an excellent ruler."

"Umm….wow, umm….I don't know what to say." Gohan was stunned. He had never even considered that he would be chosen to lead a country. "That's a big responsibility, what about school and such?"

"I've already discussed it with Chi. We would not announce your identity until your 18th birthday. You would need to spend some time at the castle to learn the proper procedures and protocols, but that can wait till after you finish college. We both agree that your education should come first, but Chi-Chi agrees that you would be the best candidate for the position."

"Well….if you think I can do it, then sure, I'll agree." Gohan responded still shaken by the offer.

"Great! Thank you, Gohan. That is a burden off my shoulders to know that the kingdom will be taken care of."

"No problem, Grandpa." Gohan and the Ox King rejoined everyone else until Bulma approached him.

"Hey, kiddo." Bulma smiled. "I have an internship position opening up soon. Ready to join Capsule Corp?"

 **What a day. First being named the crowned prince, now getting the offer he had been looking forward to from Bulma. What more could you ask for on your birthday? This was a fun chapter to write, hope it was enjoyable to read.**

 **Videl knows the secret of the Cell Games and uses that as leverage to join the police force as her way to atone for her father's lies. This will have a fun impact later in the story.**

 **I was researching ideas for another project when I ran across that excerpt from The Manual of the Warrior of the Light and instantly thought about Gohan. It just fits him so well.**

 **Thank you for reading, have a great day.**

 **(1): The Manual of the Warrior of the Light by Paulo Coelho. Page 29**


	8. Chapter 8

**This is just a short little filler chapter. Next chapter will be out soon and will be much longer.**

"Drop your weapons and surrender." Sixteen year old Videl ordered a pair of muggers. The two men looked at the petite girl, then at each other, the back at the girl before laughing.

"Run along, little girl. Go back to playing with your dollies." A tall man with a scar running from his hairline to his chin just missing his right eye said making a shooing motion with his knife.

"I don't know Vinnie, she might be able to provide us with a little entertainment, if you know what I mean." Said the second man with a leer. He was a head shorter than his accomplice with a shaved head and tattoos on his knuckles.

"Isn't she a little older than your normal preference?" Vinnie asked mockingly.

His partner shrugged. "She's small enough that if I close my eyes I can imagine her to be younger."

Videl couldn't believe her ears, were they really insinuating they would rape her? Don't they know who she is? Growling, she lowered herself into her preferred stance as the muggers looked on amused.

"Looks like she had a little spunk in her." Vinnie grinned.

"I'm going to have fun putting a little more spunk in her." The other man said pulling out a weighted sap.

Videl charged in a attacked Vinnie first, he had the knife so she considered him the bigger threat. He swung the knife at her aiming to slash her but she sidestepped and caught his arm. With a twist, she disarmed him and pushed him into a wall. Dropping low, she avoided the other man's sap that he had aimed at her head. Spinning, she swept his feet from under him dropping him hard on the ground. Rolling over, Videl slammed her heel into his gut knocking the wind from his lungs.

Vinnie had recovered and wrapped his arms around her from behind in a tight bear hug. Lifting her off the ground he called out to his accomplice. "Hey Ralph, you okay?"

Ralph struggled to his feet with murder in his eyes. "Hold that bitch still, I'm going to ruin her pretty little face." He growled picking up the knife Vinnie had dropped.

Videl waited till Ralph had closed the distance before throwing her head back breaking Vinnie's nose and swinging both feet up slamming them into Ralph's gut knocking both him and Vinnie on their backs. She leapt to her feet and smacked Ralph in the chin with a roundhouse kick knocking him out instantly. She spun around and caught Vinnie in the temple with a spinning heel kick, knocking him unconscious next to his cohort. Videl pulled out her communicator to call in the report. Pulling out a few zip ties, she secured the men's wrists and ankles before turning her attention to the muggers' victim. "Are you okay?" Speechless, he could only nod in acknowledgement. A few minutes later two police cars arrived on the scene and a female officer got out of one and approached Videl.

"I should have known it was you." The female officer sighed in exasperation.

"Hey, Jenny. I spotted these two in the act of shaking down this civilian." Videl said pointing to the nervous looking man.

Officer Jenny looked at the man and signalled her partner to get his statement. "Videl, you know you are just supposed to be on desk duty till you have finished high school and can officially join the force. The chief is not going to be happy about this."

"So what? Am I supposed to just let crimes like this happen? If I just called it in they would have gotten away. I have the power to help people, I have a responsibility to do what I can to make my city safer." Videl argued.

Officer Jenny held her hands up in surrender. "Look, I know you want to help, but you can't just charge in recklessly every time you suspect a crime is happening."

Videl looked away frustrated. She knew what she was doing, there was no way some low life thug was going to get the better of her. How was she supposed to atone for her father's actions if she was stuck in an office filing useless paperwork? "Fine, whatever." She turned to leave when Officer Jenny placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Videl….*sigh* good job, just….be careful." Jenny offered a tight smile. Videl returned the smile and left the alley.

Videl returned home and made her way to the gym. Squaring up against a heavy bag, she started laying into it with vicious kicks and punches. "Damn it! They still treat me like a little kid! I'm not a porcelain doll, I'm a fighter, damn it!" She was about to land another kick when her phone started ringing. She instantly recognized the ringtone and was tempted to ignore the call, but she couldn't do that to her best friend. "Hey 'Rase, what's up?"

"Hey V! You busy?" Erasa asked chipper as ever.

"Just blowing off some steam. What's on your mind?" Videl responded grabbing a towel and wiping sweat from her brow.

"Not much, just seeing if you wanted to hang."

"Sure, where do you want to meet?" Videl quickly agreed. She could always make time for Erasa.

"How about your place? I've got the new Mesozoic World movie! I heard that they actually have real dinosaurs in this one!"

"Erasa, you know that dinosaurs have been extinct for millions of years." Videl sighed.

"It's true, Capsule Corp was able to provide a few for the movie. I don't know where they got them from, but Gossip Weekly had an article about it." Erasa countered.

"Erasa, you know you can't believe everything you read in that…." Trash Videl wanted to say but decided to be nice. "magazine." How could she believe any story that still insisted that one of the aliens that had decimated East City was one of the participants in the Cell Games?

"I know, I know. So, can I come over? My parents are out of the house and it's really boring here by myself.

*Sigh* "Sure, come on over."

"Yay! Be there in a few, see ya, girl!" Erasa cheered.

After they hung up, Videl shook her head. "That girl has too much energy sometimes."

 **-West City-**

Gohan was on his way to deliver a message for Bulma when he saw a group of engineers huddled around a drawing board. Next to them was a new hovercycle prototype that was partially disassembled. Curious, he wandered over to see what was going on. Apparently the new antigravity system was drawing too much power for the charging system. The engineers walked away for the break room discussing possible solutions.

Gohan waited till they were out of sight before looking at the schematics and the most recent test results. He had just bent down looking at the prototype when he heard a voice behind him.

"What do you think you're doing, kid?" One of the engineers he didn't recognize demanded.

"I was just looking." Gohan said defensively standing back up.

"Look, kid, just because the boss herself brought you on as an intern doesn't mean you can just poke your nose into whatever you like. We have been working for months on this project and don't need some snot nosed kid screwing it up."

"What's going on here?" Bulma asked with her arms crossed over her chest.

"I was just telling the intern here to not mess with projects above his pay grade." The engineer shot a glare at Gohan.

Bulma looked between Gohan and her engineer a few times before addressing Gohan. "Well…?"

Gohan shrugged. "They appeared to be having some issues with the design, so I figured I'd take a look."

"We have some of the greatest minds working on this, what do you think you can do when you haven't even finished school yet?"

Bulma looked at him expectantly. It was almost imperceptible, but Gohan could almost make out a smirk on Bulma's lips. When he came on, he asked her to treat him like any other employee. He didn't want any special treatment. That is why he was still working as a gopher even after a year there.

Scratching the back of his head, Gohan pointed to the schematic. "I think you could boost your power output if you use the electromagnets in the hover drive to induce a secondary current to boost the power regeneration. I figure you can scavenge at least 15-20% of the power used by the magnets."

Bulma and the engineer looked to the schematics with wonder. "Why the HFIL didn't we think of that?" The engineer asked out loud scratching at the stubble on his chin. "Not bad, kid. You'd make a fine engineer."

Gohan grinned and scratched the back of his neck. "Umm, thanks.". Bulma just shot him a knowing smile.

"Good job, kiddo." Bulma beamed when they entered her office a little later.

"Umm, thanks, Bulma. Oh, here are the accounting figures you requested." Gohan said handing a stack of papers to her. He studied her expression for a moment. "You knew that was going to happen, didn't you?"

She flashed him an innocent smile. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Gohan laughed. "You knew I'd be walking past R&D about the time they would be going on break. You set me up." Goan said good naturedly.

"Maybe~" Bulma admitted with a smile. "With your intelligence and talents, your abilities are being wasted using you just for running errands."

"I don't want to be given special treatment, you know that. I want to earn my position just like anyone else did here." Gohan sighed.

"And you just earned a promotion. Dr Watt was impressed with your idea and requested that you be allowed to intern with his team." Gohan was surprised, it was usually the students working on their higher degrees that were offered the R&D internships. Only Chris Knight had been offered such an honor without already having a Bachelor's Degree, and he was still older that Gohan by almost ten years when he received his offer.

Gohan scratched at the back of his head for a moment. "Well, I do have a few ideas…."


	9. Chapter 9

**Here is Chapter 9 at long last.**

Gohan was taking his time flying back to West City after his most recent lesson with his grandfather at his castle on Mt Frypan. Sure, he could have just used instant transmission to get back instantly, but he enjoyed the relaxation that flying gave him. It was one of the few pleasures his busy schedule allotted him.

His day usually started with a quick warm-up and a spar with Vegeta followed by a hearty breakfast. Then he would spend a few hours studying before putting in several hours in the R&D department at Capsule Corp. Bulma still asked him to do some odd jobs, but he spent most of his time working with Dr Terran Watt brainstorming with his team. Gohan had even proposed a few ideas that cemented his place among them. Twice a week, he flew to Frypan Mountain to learn politics and other essential lessons needed to lead a country.

Gohan's mind wandered a bit while he was flying. He realized it had almost been six years since the Cell Games, almost six years since he had seen his dad. The thought saddened him, but he had long since gotten over the guilt of that day. He realized several years back that, yes, he had made mistakes, but it was his father's decision to stay in the Otherworld. He didn't agree with his father's decision, but he knew that he thought he was doing the right thing by staying away. Gohan sensed Bulma in his house as he opened the door but thought nothing of it as she was a common visitor. Entering the living room he smiled and greeted his mother and godmother. "Hi Mom, hi Bulma." Walking over he gave his mother a quick kiss on the cheek and hugged Bulma. "Well, I'm off to bed. Good night."

"Hold up just a minute, Gohan." His mother said sweetly. "We have something we need to discuss with you."

 **-+-+Line Break+-+-**

Videl had just finished arresting a pair of would be jewel thieves she had spotted breaking into Carat's Fine Jewellery. After two years of apprehending criminals without official sanction, the police chief finally relented and deputised video into the auxiliary force. Because of her father, she was neigh on untouchable officially, and he was tired of all the extra paperwork that she generated with her vigilante actions, so with her as a recognized member of the force, the paperwork was now her responsibility.

After leaving the station, Videl decided that a nice hot bath was in order. Unfortunately for her, her best friend picked that moment to call her.

"Hello?" Videl answered cautiously.

"Hey Vi! Whatcha doin~?" Erasa asked in a song song voice that instantly had Videl on her guard. She knew that tone of voice and she didn't like it.

"I'm heading home to take a hot bath and relax." Videl answered.

"Poo, that's no fun. How about we head to that new club that just opened last weekend. You promised you'd go with me." Videl rolled her eyes at the pleasing tone, she could almost picture Erasa giving her puppy dog eyes through the phone.

*sigh* "Fine, I'll go, but no trying to set me up with some guy. I'm not interested in relationships. Besides, don't forget my dad's rule." Videl reluctantly agreed. While she knew the truth about the Cell Games now, she had no problem using his so called dating rule to keep guys away. She knew that if she actually met someone that truly made her happy her father would accept them even without having to fight him. That rule was just there to keep the fortune seekers and moochers away.

"Great! Let's meet up at eight and dance till we can't stand anymore!" Erasa cheered.

Shaking her head at her friend's antics, Videl went home to shower and get ready for the club. She looked at herself in the mirror after getting dressed. She had forgone her usual twin ponytails for a simple single ponytail. She was wearing a loose fitting dark blue shirt with orange trim, snug fitting jeans that still allowed for a good range of movement, and comfortable wedge shoes. Satisfied with her appearance, she left her house to meet up with Erasa at the club.

She smiled when she spotted her friend, but her smile dimmed when she saw Sharpner standing next to her. She used to be great friends with the blonde boy, but things had become a bit strained between them over the past couple of years. She put on her best fake smile as she approached since she didn't want to ruin Erasa's night with unnecessary drama. It was just a few hours, she could put up with him for that long for Erasa.

Or so she thought. "Hey babe, lookin good." Sharpner said as he wrapped an arm around Videl's shoulder, similar to the one he had over Erasa's. Videl clenched her teeth as she fought the urge to deck Sharpner for daring to touch her. "Man, I'm the luckiest guy here. I've got two beautiful women with me and one of them is the daughter of the Champ. Say, Videl. How about we go back to my place after we leave here? My parents aren't home, so we could have some fun alone OOF!" Sharpner found himself hunched over with Videl's elbow buried in his gut.

"How many times do I have to tell you? I AM NOT INTERESTED IN GOING OUT WITH YOU!"

"Don't be like that, babe." Sharpner wheezed. "We'd be perfect together." Sharpner's world suddenly tilted as videl spun quickly and swept his feet from under him sending him to the pavement. Videl grabbed Erasa's arm and lead her into the club leaving Sharpner sprawled on the ground trying to regain his bearings.

Erasa looked at her best friend with a frown. "Don't you think you were a little harsh back there?"

"Not at all. How many times do I have to tell him that I'm not interested? Just because my dad approved of him doesn't mean that I do." Videl huffed. "I only tolerate him now a days because you ask me to."

"Well, can't change what's already done. The dance floor is calling my name, and I intend to answer." Erasa perked up and dragged a reluctant Videl to an empty table to deposit their things and order a couple of drinks. After a short bit, Videl could feel her sour mood improving as she got into the beat of the music. By the end of the night Videl left with a smile on her face.

 **####Line Break####**

Gohan sat down on the chair opposite the sofa that his mother and Bulma currently occupied. "So what did you need to talk to me about?" He asked cautiously. It never boded well for him when these two conspired together.

"Your mother and I have been talking" Bulma started out. "And we think it would be a good idea for you to go to a public high school."

Gohan looked at the two women waiting for the punchline. "This had got to be a joke. I've already started earning college credits, what's the point of taking a step back in my education level?"

Chi-Chi was just about to scold her son for questioning their plans but Bulma placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down. She know that this was the time for logic, not emotion. "We are both very proud of how far you have come along in your studies. Don't consider this to be a step backwards in your education, more like a different avenue. You are a brilliant young man, but you don't interact with people your own age. The youngest member of the staff is still almost ten years your senior. We think it would be best if you gained more experience dealing with your peers, and high school is a perfect environment to do this."

"I'm not getting any younger you know. I want grandbabies before I'm too old to dote on them." Chi-Chi interjected. Bulma facepalmed as Gohan gave his mother a dry stare.

"I guess there's no getting out of this?" He asked with resignation.

"Nope!" Bulma answered with a cheeky grin.

"Fine, but I get to choose the school." Gohan acquiesced.

"Now listen here young man…." Chi-Chi began when Bulma interrupted her again.

"I guess that could be acceptable. Any reason why you want to choose?" Bulma inquired.

"You want me to learn to interact with kids my age, right?" Bulma nodded in the affirmative. "Well, if I'm going to do this, I want somewhere I'm not being fawned over sure to my relation to you."

"I see your point. Do you have anywhere in mind?"

"What about Orange Star High in Satan City." Gohan suggested after a few minutes of thought.

"Why there of all places?" Bulma asked shocked.

"It's located between here and the Ox Kingdom, and people are too fixated on Mr Satan to care about who I am." Gohan explained his reasoning.

Bulma considered it for a moment. "That might just work. They are rated nearly as high as the premier schools here in West City, and who would ever consider that the 'delivery boy' would attend school there."

"So they have a good educational program there?" Chi-Chi asked, trying to hide her distaste in the thought of her baby boy being in the same city as that buffoon.

"They do, Hercule pumps almost as much money into that school as Capsule Corp does in the schools around here." Bulma responded.

Chi-Chi was quiet for a few minutes while she considered the options. Finally she agreed. "That settles it. Tomorrow, I want you to go register for classes."

"Mom, you do realize that classes start on a few days, right?" Gohan pointed out.

"All the more reason for you to get registered as soon as possible." Chi-Chi decreed.

"Hey Gohan" Bulma got his attention. "Swing by the lab tomorrow after you get back, I've got something that should help you fit in a bit better."

"Sure." Gohan stood up and but his mother and godmother goodnight before heading to his room. Part of him was dreading the experience, but a part of him was actually excited at the prospect of making some friends his own age.

The next morning after a quick spar with Vegeta, which the elder Saiyan won this time, Gohan gave his mother a quick kiss on the cheek as he headed out to register for his classes. Landing just outside the city limits, Gohan stopped and chuckled at the giant billboard depicting Mr Satan. "I think that man loves himself almost as much as Vegeta loves himself."

He was almost to the school when sounds of a disturbance caught his attention. Stepping into an alleyway, he powered up to super Saiyan before seeking out the problem. Finding the disturbance, he landed on a rooftop to assess the situation. It looked like a simple mugging. One male with a knife holding an older couple. Gohan was just about to step in when a girl's voice made him pause.

"Drop the knife and surrender quietly and I might not have to hurt you." She was about his age, petite with her raven hair done up in twin ponytails extending just past her shoulders. She was wearing an oversized white t shirt, black biker shorts, neon green boots and black fingerless gloves. Something about her seemed familiar to him. Watching her take the assailant apart he had a flashback about a girl he had beaten at the 'Intergalactic' Tournament nearly six years ago.

'So she lives here in Satan City, I wonder if she goes to Orange Star?' Seeing as she had things under control here, Gohan decided to fly the rest of the way to the school to be on time for his appointment.

Videl had just knocked out the knife wielder when she felt like someone was watching her. Spinning around she barely caught a glimpse of a golden light as it launched from the roof behind her. 'What the HFIL was that?' She wondered. Turning her attention back to the would be mugger and secured his wrists and ankles with zip ties before checking his pockets for any sort of identification. All she found was an origami crane made from filled black cardstock.

 **)))) Line Break ((((**

"Hey, Bulma. I'm back!" Gohan called out as he entered Bulma's personal lab at Capsule Corp.

"Hey, kiddo. How'd the placement tests go?" Bulma asked sliding out from under a prototype of the time machine Future Trunks used to come back in time.

"I never realized how little they expect you to know while in high school. I managed to ace all the tests without even trying." Gohan answered.

"Well, they don't have Chi-Chi breathing down their necks. Probably a good thing for their sanity though." They both chuckled at that.

"You said you had something for me?" Gohan asked changing the subject.

"Yeah, a couple of things that should help you out a bit." Bulma confirmed as she strode over to her work desk. She handed him a dyno-cap container and a prescription bottle with pills inside. "I figure you don't want to be caught flying, so I gave you a new jetcopter and the first production model of the hovercycle you helped develop." He opened the dyno-cap container and looked at the two capsules marked J.C. and H.C.. Smiling, he put the container into his pocket and turned his attention to the pills.

"We have been working on synthesizing sunzu beans for a few years now. While we have yet to duplicate the healing properties of the beans, we have managed to recreate the filling sensation that the beans provide. You can take one of these pills just before you eat lunch at school so you can appear to have a normal appetite. Not sure if your Saiyan table manners would be well received by your peers."

Gohan was impressed. "Thanks Bulma! This stuff will help out greatly." He thanked her and gave her a hug.

"You better get home before Chi-Chi decides to break out the frying pan." Bulma teased. Thanking her again, Gohan headed to his house to see his mother.

It was the day before classes were set to start and GossipPage was ablaze with posts. Erasa scanned the feed to keep up to date with any new news. A new update by a girl named Angela caught her eye.

 _Anyone know anything about the new hottie in school?_ A picture was posted with the question. It showed a slightly taller than average young man with spiky black hair. He was dressed in loose fitting clothes, but he had a handsome face. Erasa couldn't help but feel like she had seen him somewhere before.

 _A name girl, did you get his name?_ Another girl asked.

 _The name on his registration card was Son Gohan, I think._ Angela answered.

Erasa immediately flashed back to seeing a cute boy about her age that had beat her best friend at that tournament Videl's dad had helped sponsor.

Another girl, this one with brown hair and green eyes couldn't believe what she was seeing. Was it true? Was Gohan actually going to attend the same school as her?

 _Are you sure it said 'Son Gohan'?_ She asked excitedly.

 _You know Gohan, Lime?_ Erasa asked surprised.

 _Yeah, I knew him back when I lived in Chazke Village._ Lime replied.

The gossip chat continued on for a couple more hours before the girls started signing off to go to sleep. Two girls went to sleep with smiles on their faces, eager for school to start the following day.

Gohan awoke the next morning to find a weight on his chest. From the mop of spiky black hair, he knew it was his little brother, Goten. Giving his sleeping brother a kind smile, Gohan ruffled his hair gently before shifting the young demi-saiyan off his chest. Goten looked up to his older brother almost as a father figure. The little tike meant the world to him, a small piece of his father that remained even though Goku chose to stay in the Otherworld. Gohan could only hope that one day his father would return so he could meet his youngest son.

Gohan covered his little brother up and prepared to do his morning training when he spotted his mother outside. It had taken a few years, but Chi-Chi had finally recovered her strength and had began practicing Tai Chi again to aid in her recovery. Deciding to forgo his usual regimen, Gohan went outside and joined his mother in her exercises. His mother gave him a smile as he mimicked her stance. As they flowed through the katas, Gohan allowed his concerns about his first day of school to melt away.

"Gohan, go wake your brother while I finish breakfast." Chi-Chi requested. Gohan was just about to climb up the stairs to do as she asked when he was almost bowled over by a ball of energy.

"Hey Gohan, play with me after breakfast!" Goten pleaded.

"Sorry, squirt. I have to go to school." Gohan said ruffling his little brother's hair. "But I'll tell you what. How about we go visit my old friend Icarus after I get home?" It had been quite some time since Gohan had gone to see his dragon friend, he hoped that Icarus still remembered him.

"REALLY?! THAT WOULD BE AWESOME! Wait till I tell Trunks, he'll be so jealous." Goten cheered.

"Boys! Breakfast is ready!" Chi-Chi called from the kitchen. Both boys sped to the dining room table and began inhaling their food. Chi-Chi shook her head in exasperation. 'Just like their father.' She smiled at the thought. "Gohan, hurry up. You don't want to be late on your first day."

Gohan grabbed his book bag along with the items Bulma gave him and a small lunch his mother prepared. He gave his mother a kiss on the cheek and ruffled Goten's hair and headed out the door.

It didn't take him long to arrive at Satan City. He landed just outside the city limits and decapsulated his hovercycle. He was making this time to the school when the sound of heavy machine gun fire caught his attention he pulled into an alley and changed into a Super Saiyan before rushing to the scene.

Videl was cursing her luck. She was on her way to school when an APB sounded from her wrist communicator. The Satan City Federal Bank was being robbed by a group of heavily armed men. She arrived just in time to watch a six wheeled armored personnel carrier open fire on the first responding officer's car with a heavy caliber machine gun. The to officers inside didn't stand a chance as the car was riddled with half dollar sized holes. Whoever these crooks were, they were very well funded.

Videl dove behind the corner of a building just as the gunner turned his gun on her. Even though her adrenaline was pumping, Videl managed to keep calm enough to relay all the information she could back to the police headquarters. Seeing a car parked nearby, she got an idea and rushed over to the car, quickly breaking one of the mirrors of the door. Holding the mirror around the corner, she observed the crooks' actions to keep the higher ups informed. Suddenly the bank doors burst open and five men exited wearing body armor and carrying assault rifles. A sixth man was loaded down with several bags of currency. The gunmen proceeded to lay down cover fire at any home of movement resulting in several innocent bystanders being hit.

Videl grit her teeth as she tried to come up with a plan to stop the robbers when a golden glow above her caught her attention, as well as the attention of the gunmen. Just as they were about to open fire, she heard a shout.

"Solar Flare!" A burst of intense light temporarily blinded everyone in the vicinity. Gohan landed on top of the APC and knocked the gunner out with a flick of his finger. He then twisted the barrel of the gun into an unrecognizable mass. He ripped the cover off the driver's compartment and yanked the driver from the wheeled tank and knocked him out before laying him on the ground.

In a flash he was amidst the group that exited the bank. With as much control as he could muster, he took down all six men in the blink of an eye. He left as quickly as he had arrived. By the time everyone's eyesight returned, all the robbers were incapacitated and their weapons rendered useless hunks of scrap.

Videl scowled as she took in the scene. 'What the HFIL was that flash? Some sort of flash bang?' She was just starting to check on the civilians when the Satan City SWAT team arrived along with paramedics and additional police forces to handle crowd control. After giving her verbal report to her superiors, Videl raced to the school, already late enough as it was.

After leaving the scene of the robbery, Gohan retrieved his cycle and made his way to the school. Since he was a few minutes late, he was alone in the parking lot as he capsulized his cycle and entered the main building. He stopped by the office to obtain his class schedule and a campus map before finding his classroom. Seeing as class had already started, the door was shut so Gohan knocked as lightly as he could.

The door opened to reveal an older man in a tweed suit and a lack of any humor in his eyes. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, sir. I'm Son Gohan, I'm supposed to be in this class." Gohan introduced himself and extended his hand for a shake.

"You're late. That is not a good way to make a first impression." The teacher scowled.

"My apologies, sir. I underestimated my commute." Gohan explained.

"Hmph. Try to not let it happen again. I'm Richard Head, your homeroom teacher as well as first period history. Wait out here for a moment while I get the classroom under order. He closed the door as he attempted to bring the class to order. With nothing to do but wait, Gohan closed his eyes and focused on the ki signatures in the room. His eyes came open when he found a familiar ki. Just then the door opened and Mr Head beckoned him in.

"Class, we have a transfer student joining us starting today. You all should learn from his example, he scored a perfect score on all his placement exams."

"Heh, sounds like a total nerd." Sharpener whispered to Erasa, but if she heard him, she didn't show it. She watched as the tall young man entered the room. He had spiky black hair and black eyes. He was wearing a black button up shirt that was unbuttoned over a loose fitting white long sleeve undershirt along with blue jeans and Doc Martin shoes.

Gohan entered the room and his eyes immediately locked on a pair of bright green eyes that he hadn't seen in years. Lime felt herself blush slightly at his gaze. 'Oh my Kami, he has gotten so hot!' She screamed in her head.

"Hey, Dick Head! Example this!" A student shouted as he fired a spit wad from a straw at the new boy. Without taking his eyes off of Lime's, Gohan shifted his head just enough to avoid the incoming projectile. Unfortunately the girl rushing into the class just behind him was not so lucky.

A deathly silence enveloped the room as the spit wad hit its unintended mark, directly between Videl's eyes. The boy that had shot the wad paled instantly before bolting out the emergency exit triggering the alarm.

Pissed at both being late and being hit in the face with the wet paper wad, Videl stormed into the room and shoved the boy in front of her out of her way, or at least that was her intention. He didn't budge an inch when she angrily shoved him much to get shock. He turned to look at her breaking eye contact with his childhood friend.

Gohan instantly recognized her, but it took Videl a few moments to place the somewhat familiar face. Suddenly she jumped back into a defensive stance and yelled. "It's you!"

"Miss Satan, is there a problem?" Mr Head asked in a stern voice.

Videl glared at Gohan for a moment. "No, sir." She answered curtly.

"Then might I suggest you find your seat?"

Videl gave Gohan a look that said 'this isn't over' before she climbed the steps and took her seat next to Erasa. Gohan watched her walk away with an amused look until he spotted a certain blonde looking straight at him. Just like with Lime, Gohan lost himself in his memories for a moment.

He remembered the cute blonde from the tournament, and wished had had more time to talk with her. Now here she was staring back at him, a gentle smile on her lips. Her eyes had a mischievous sparkle to them as she shifted them to indicate the teacher.

"Mr Son, if you're back with us, would you please find an empty seat so I can do my job."

Gohan blushed and scratched the back of his head nervously. "Sorry, Mr Head."

"Hey, cutie! This one's available!" Erasa called out.

Making his was up the auditorium style room, Gohan sat down in the offered seat. "Thanks, umm...Erasa, right?"

Erasa beamed that he remembered her. They had only met for a moment all those years ago, so she had no idea if he'd even recognize her. "Yay! You remembered! And this is Sharpner," Sharpner scoffed at the introduction. "And of course you know Videl." The raven haired girl gave him an annoyed glance.

"Hehe, yeah." Gohan chuckled at her bubbly personality. "I remember meeting you all at the tournament back then." He directed his gaze to Videl. "Did he say Satan? As in Mr Satan?"

Videl rolled her eyes. 'Oh great, just what I need; another on of Dad's fans hounding me.' "Yeah, what of it?"

"Hmm, oh, nothing. I just didn't know that Mr Satan had a daughter is all." Gohan shrugged as he pulled out his books.

"You mean you didn't know Videl's dad was THE Mr Satan?" Erasa asked incredulously.

"Miss Bell, I would appreciate it if you would please pay attention to the lesson. As they say; Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it, and if you do not pass my class, you _will_ repeat it next year." Mr Head chastised.

Erasa sank in her chair embarrassed. "Sorry, sir."

The bell rang ending class which allowed the students to relax for a few minutes. Lime took this opportunity to hand Gohan a note asking him to meet her for lunch. He looked at her and agreed with a smile. Erasa felt a stab of jealousy at the interaction. She remembered the girl saying that they were childhood friends before, so it made sense she'd want to get reacquainted with her friend, but Erasa wanted to learn more about the boy herself.

After Lime went back to her seat, Erasa asked Gohan. "So, Gohan, where did you go to school before here?"

"Oh, I was homeschooled. Up till a few years ago I lived out in the 439 district near Mt Paozu. We moved to West City while my mom was pregnant with my little brother and we've been there since." Gohan answered.

"You live in West City? Why on earth would you come to Satan City for school then? That's like two hours away by the high speed train!" Erasa exclaimed. Videl looked at him suspiciously.

"Because I wanted to go somewhere I could be judged for who I am, not by who I am acquainted with. I'm sure you could understand that, right, Videl?" Gohan responded, aiming the last part of the comment at the raven haired girl who looked away abashed.

"Oh, really? So you know someone famous?" Erasa asked intrigued.

"I do, but I'd rather not talk about that right now with so many people around." Gohan said pointedly causing several people who had been eavesdropping to look away.

"Okay, I get it. But you will tell me later, please?" Erasa pleaded giving him her best puppy dog eyes.

Gohan sighed. "Sure, as long as you keep it to yourself. Like I said, I really don't want to be hounded by glory seekers. You don't strike me like that, so I guess there'd be no harm."

After a couple of more classes, the bell finally rang releasing the students for lunch. "Hey Gohan!" Erasa called out as he put away his supplies. "Want to have lunch with us?"

"Maybe next time, I already promised to meet Lime for lunch." Gohan apologized.

"That's fine, she can join us too." Erasa insisted. Running over to the brunette she tapped Lime on the shoulder. "Want to join us for lunch? I'd love to hear about you and Gohan as kids."

Lime looked at the group uncertainly. She got along fine with Erasa, but she disliked Sharpner and, while she thought Videl was okay, she hated how her dad still claimed to have been the one to defeat Cell. Even if Videl was unaware of the lie, it still rubbed her the wrong way that the one really responsible never got the credit she thought he deserved. "I don't know, I kinda wanted to talk to Gohan alone. It's kind of personal, you know."

Erasa pouted cutely before going back to Gohan. "I guess I'll have to take that rain check. But tomorrow you'll have lunch with me, right?"

"Of course." He smiled. "I'll see you in the next class." Gohan left the room to find Lime. He could tell by her ki that she was heading to the roof. He opened the door and stepped out on the roof where he saw her standing with her back to him looking out towards the city.

She slowly turned around and he could see unshed tears glistening in her eyes. Suddenly he found himself in her embrace, those previously unshed tears rolling down her cheeks soaking into his shirt.

 **Be honest, how many people are screaming at me right now for ending the chapter there? I know, that was very evil of me. I'm already working on the next chapter to finish off the first day, we still have PE to contend with. I'll try to get there next chapter out asap, then I'll need to work on catching up Tides of Change.**


	10. Chapter 10

Gohan stood there in shock for a moment before he wrapped his arms around the trembling girl. "I've missed you too, Lime."

He allowed her to cry into his shirt without saying anything else for several minutes. When it appeared she had regained control, he gently freed himself and guided her over to a bench. "How have you been?" He asked.

"I've been good. Oh, Gohan, it's so good to see you again. I've missed you so much." Lime said, trying to keep from crying again.

"I've missed you, too. How is your grandfather doing?" Gohan asked.

Grandpa is doing good, he's still timing that little market back in Chazke Village. How about your family?"

"They're doing really good. Mom's finally back to get old self and Goten is an absolute ball of energy. I don't see how she'd be able to keep up with him if we didn't live so close to Trunks and Vegeta." Gohan told her, smiling as he thought about his little brother and all the mischief he gets into with his best friend. "So what about you? Anything new?" Lime hesitated and looked away nervously. "Lime, it's me, okay? You can tell me anything, I won't judge you or be upset. I'll always be your friend."

A tear rolled down her cheek. "I guess that's what I was always going to be, huh? Just a friend."

"Lime…."

"No, it's okay. I'm happy to be your friend." Lime assured him. "Not that it would make a difference at this point anyway."

"What do you…."

"I'm engaged." Lime blurted out. "That's the reason my parents came for me back then. They had arranged a marriage to secure a promotion." She explained with a touch of anger. "I'll never forgive them, but Tomoya is actually a very good person."

"I see, I'm sorry that happened to you." Gohan said placing a hand on her shoulder. "Does he make you happy?"

"Yes, he actually reminds me a bit of you…. well other than the super powered, world saving, half-alien part that is." They both laughed at her humor, it was just what was needed to break the tension.

"So why are you here?" Lime asked.

"Mom wants me to socialize with people my own age. She's afraid that I'll never 'meet a nice girl to give her grand babies' with the way my life is going." Gohan answered honestly.

Lime giggled. "Why doesn't that surprise me? But why here?"

"Because it's between West City and the Ox Kingdom, makes it a convenient place. Here, I'm just Gohan, I don't have people hounding me to meet Bulma or trying to get an in on what Capsule Corp is developing, or anything else like that. I want to make sure that people see me as me."

"I've always seen you for you." Lime said quietly.

Gohan sighed. "I know, Lime. I know." He said remorsefully. "Back then, I just wasn't ready. I love you, just…. just not the way you need. I think of you as my sister."

Lime sighed heavily. "I was afraid of that. Well, I guess that's something though, but if you ever develop a sister complex…." She grinned, leaving the thought hanging.

Gohan was about to respond when his stomach interrupted with a loud rumble. Both teens looked at each other before bursting or laughing. "Are you hungry? I know I told my mom to pack a light meal, but I bet she still loaded me up."

Wiping her eyes one last time, Lime nodded. "Sure, that sounds good." Gohan smiled back at her and pulled out his lunch capsule. As he expected, there was a small feast inside. He took one of the pills Bulma gave him and the two teens dug into the food.

"Your mom's cooking is as good I remember." Lime sighed as they finished eating. "So you are still living in West City?"

"Yeah. The pregnancy and birth really took a lot out of mom. It took several years for her to recover fully, and by then we had become accustomed to living near the city. Mom really likes having a friend close by to visit with and someone to help keep Goten occupied."

"I see, I guess that makes pretty good sense." The bell rang then to end lunch. Gohan cleaned up the dishes and sealed them back into their capsule and offered his hand to help Lime up. She gave him another hug before they left the roof to return to class.

Once back inside, Lime excused herself to go to the restroom so she could touch up her makeup while Gohan went to the classroom and back to his seat. He was quickly joined by Erasa who was dragging Videl with her.

"Hey, Gohan!" She called out enthusiastically. She then paused as she looked around. "Where's Lime?"

"Hi Erasa, did you have a good lunch? Lime had to stop by the lady's room. She should be back any moment." Gohan answered.

Erasa leaned down and rested her elbows in the desk in front of Gohan. He quickly averted his eyes and blushed as she gave him a great view of her cleavage. "So what's the story with the two of you? Are you here to sweep her off her feet? That would be so romantic."

Gohan chuckled at her dreamy expression. "No, nothing like that. I didn't even know she went to school here. We were friends when we were younger, but we moved away from each other about six years ago. She's more like a sister to me than anything."

Erasa cheered internally at hearing him liken her to a sister. "So you two lived in the same village?"

"No, my family lived a short distance away. I actually met her just before…." Gohan started.

"He saved me from drowning in a river just before the Cell Games." Lime finished for him. Then she giggled as she told the story about how she called him a pervert for grabbing her chest as he saved her. Erasa giggled a little at that as well. Videl paused as a report came over her com's earpiece. Gohan frowned as he listened in with his enhanced hearing. He could tell Videl wanted to go help, but it was only minor crimes, not serious enough to excuse her from classes.

'Even though Mr Satan lives here and his daughter helps with the police force, the amount of crime here is staggering. There must be something I can do to help, but I really don't want to expose my powers to everyone here. More than my privacy is at stake here.' Gohan pondered what he could do as the teacher came in and started class.

Gohan barely paid attention through the next several classes, but seeing as though he already learned everything in the syllabus years ago, he really didn't need to. Gohan decided to talk to Bulma about an idea he had after school let out. He was snatched back to reality when the bell rang and many of the students started to leave.

"Hey, Gohan" Erasa tapped the boy on the shoulder. "You coming? It's time for PE."

'Well damn. I forgot about PE. Oh well, here goes nothing.' "Right behind you, Erasa." Gohan said with faked enthusiasm. He waited till most of the boys had finished changing before changing into his workout clothes. He opted for a lightweight loose fitting jogging suit in light grey with grey trainers. The top had a Capsule Corp logo on the left part of the chest..

Gohan met up with the rest of the class on the sports field where the instructor was just beginning to gone out the instructions for the day.

"Today we're going to set your baseline performance. Your final grade will be based off your percentage of increase over your baseline you set today. This does not mean you can slack off today, I want to see where you are so we know what needs work. Alright, Videl, would you lead the class in some warm up stretches? After that we'll get started." The coach directed.

"No problem, Coach Balzac. Okay, everyone. You heard the coach, now line up!" Videl shouted. She began a simple warm up plan to account for the less athletic students. Gohan followed along and tried to not look bored.

After the warm ups were complete, the whole class took to the track. After a lap to prepare themselves they were to run a lap to be recorded. Gohan completed his lap just behind Videl and Sharpner, though he had to try and force himself to breathe harder than normal to match the rest of the class. Videl noticed that unlike the rest of the class though, there wasn't a drop of sweat to be seen on his body.

The rest of the tests that day yielded similar results, Gohan always placed near the top of the class looking none the worse for wear. Videl found herself watching the mysterious boy closer and closer throughout the day. She just couldn't figure it out, she had been training most of her life, yet he looked like he was taking a walk in the park while she was wearing exhaustion.

"Good job class. Now we have just one last test to perform." Coach Balzac informed the class. "Thanks to Mr Satan, we have a new piece of equipment to test out." Walking over to a machine covered with a cloth, he removed the cloth to reveal a punching machine. Seeing the incredulous looks on some of the students faces, he chuckled. "Don't worry, we are only testing out the machine for possible inclusion in the curriculum for the future. While you are still required to test on this machine, it will not affect your grade in any way." At this several of the students sighed in relief. "Videl, if you would do the honors."

Videl shook her head in exasperation. She had tried to dissuade her father from doing this, but his stubbornness won out and here she was about to test out his latest folly. She loved her father, even if he was a womanizing blockhead. "Sure Coach." She walked up and assumed her stance. Once she had the clear from the coach that the machine was set up properly, she let loose with her most powerful punch.

"Impressive, a 201. Alright class, form a single line and move this along." Gohan eased his way to the end of the line where Erasa and Lime met up with him. Following Videl was Sharpner who scored a respectable 195 fitting his place as the captain of the boxing team.

"Beat that, Nerd Boy." He smirked as he bumped forcefully into Gohan's shoulder as he was past.

"Hey, Gohan. Try to not break the machine." Lime teased.

"Only if you try to not show off too much." Gohan retorted.

Lime grinned at him challengingly. Erasa could see the almost sibling like play between the two and felt a stab of jealousy at their closeness. Eventually it was her turn and she punched the target with everything she had. "Good job, Erasa. 88. Lime, you're up."

Lime was almost bouncing with excitement. Even though she had lived in the city for the last six years, she had kept up with her training and she hoped to impress Gohan with how strong she was. Even if he didn't return her feelings, she felt the need to receive his approval. Slipping into a stance very reminiscent of her grandfather's, she laid into the target with a resounding thump. "Amazing. Class, looks like we have a new high score. 202!"

Videl glared at the brunette for beating her score. 'How the HFIL did she beat my score? I'll have to ask her about that later along with who taught her that stance.' Videl filed that thought away so she could focus on her other conundrum, Son Gohan. She was still trying to figure him out. Intelligent enough to ace the rather rigorous entrance exams, a feat that had never been done before, skilled enough to defeat her at the junior division at the Intergalactic Tournament, enough stamina to complete all the exercises during class without even breaking a sweat. He was now about to take his turn at the punching machine and she wanted to see where his score fell. She had a feeling that it would rival her's, and loathe to admit it, Lime's, but she wanted to watch it for herself.

Gohan stepped up to the machine and slipped into his familiar stance and closed his eyes to focus on controlling his strength. With a slow breath out, he moved like lightning. He stopped his fist just shy of the target, but the air pressure was enough to score him a third place 200. Letting out a sigh of relief, he smiled and turned to walk away. Little did he know that one person did observe his little stunt. Videl narrowed her eyes in suspicion. She could clearly see his fist stop an instant before making contact, yet he almost matched her score. He was very smart, so did he have some sort of device that could interfere with the machine? If so, how would he have known to bring such a device? It must be some sort of trick. Videl swore to herself that she would get to the bottom of this.

"What! No way the nerd beat me!" Sharpner exclaimed. A few of the other jobs agreed with the blonde. Lime tried to hide her amusement at the jocks' reaction. She knew how strong Gohan really was after all.

"Wow, Gohan, you're really strong." Erasa complimented with a bright smile.

Gohan grinned and scratched the back of his head. "You think so? Guess it comes from when I used to live in the mountains."

"Alright! Good work class. That's it for today, go ahead and go get changed. Tomorrow we will go over what we will do for the rest of the term." Coach Balzac dismissed the class.

In the guy's locker room, a situation was developing. Gohan had already finished changing by the time the rest of the male students arrived in the locker room. He was just putting the last of his gym clothes in his locker when the door slammed shut.

"Hey, Nerdboy. You must think you're hot stuff, huh? How'd you do it? There's no way a nerd like you could be stronger than all of us." Sharpner tried to intimidate Gohan. "And don't think I haven't noticed you getting friendly with my girls. Word to the wise, stay away from Erasa and Videl, otherwise I might just have to show you where you really stand in the scheme of things."

Gohan cocked an eyebrow at the threat. "I think they are fully capable of deciding who they associate with. If they don't want me around, they can tell me themselves."

Sharpner's scowl deepened. "I tried to do this the nice way, guess I'll have to persuade you the hard way." He launched a left jab at Gohan's face that missed when he leaned his head to the side. Sharpner's fist slammed into the lockers with a sickening crunch.

"That looks painful, you may need to put of your lesson until you get that looked at." Gohan tsked with faked concern.

Sharpner glared at him hatefully. "What are you guys waiting for, get him!" Several of the jocks that had accompanied him moved to surround Gohan.

Gohan sized up each of his opponents and formulated a plan to keep from hurting them too badly. Marker Felt and Penn Cap were the next two to rush him while the other football players ensured he wouldn't run away. Gohan dodged and weaved through their attacks until Marker overextended on a haymaker allowing Gohan to maneuver him into the path of Penn's right hook, laying Marker out cold on the locker room floor.

Before anyone else could attack Gohan, a loud voice interrupted them. "What in the bloody HFIL is going on in here?" Coach Balzac hollered. Everyone except Gohan, Sharpner and Marker scrambled out of the room and away from the coach's wrath.

"It was just a bit of rough housing that got out of hand." Gohan explained causing Sharpner to look at him confused.

The coach looked at the unconscious Marker then to Sharpner who was still cradling his injured hand. "That true, Shaver?"

Wincing, Sharpner nodded. "Y-yes, sir. You know, boys will be boys."

The coach looked at Sharpner for a moment then turned on his heel. "Son, pick Felt up and take him and Shaver to the nurse's office."

"Yes, sir." Gohan responded as he helped Marker up who was just coming to.

"This doesn't mean I owe you anything, Nerdboy." Sharpner hissed after the coach left.

"Didn't do it for you." Gohan said as he walked Marker out of the locker room.

After depositing the jock at the nurse's office, Gohan made his way to his locker where he found Erasa and Videl waiting on him. What took you so long? Classes let out over 20 minutes ago." Erasa pouted.

"Where's Sharpner?" Videl asked suspiciously.

Erasa looked around just realizing Videl was right. "Huh, that's strange. Want he just in the locker room with you, Gohan?"

Gohan scratched at the back of his head nervously. "Well, he's kind of in the nurse's office."

"What happened?" "What did he do this time?" Erasa and Videl asked at the same time.

"He took a swing at me and ended up punching the lockers." Gohan admitted.

"Why…" Videl started to ask but was interrupted by her communicator going off.

" _All available officers, a group of unknown assailants have just hijacked a bus from Herculopolis Preparatory School. Bus last sighted on Hwy 1 heading southbound. Suspected Red Shark gang. Heavily armed and dangerous. All available officers respond."_

Videl shot a torn look at Erasa. "Go ahead, I'll be able to find a ride home. Go save the day." Erasa assured her friend. Videl gave her a thankful smile and a quick hug before decapsulating her jet copter and giving chase.

Gohan watched her leave with concern in his eyes. He knew she could handle herself in most situations, but this seemed a bit out of her league. Erasa noticed his expression and sighed. "You're worried about Videl, aren't you?"

Gohan turned his attention to her. "Who wouldn't be? It's not like she's bullet proof."

"I know, but I've seen her pull off some amazing feats before. She'll be just fine, just like always." Erasa started, but Gohan couldn't tell if she was trying to convince him, or herself. "Hey, I was wondering…. Would you be able to give me a ride home?" Erasa asked hopefully giving him puppy dog eyes.

Gohan chuckled. "Sure, no problem. Just give me a second, I forgot to grab a book from my locker." Gohan ran back into the school and ducked into the bathroom. He crossed his arms over his chest and concentrated on the way that Piccolo had taught him. Suddenly there were two Gohans standing side by side. With a quick nod one of the Gohans opened a window and flew out as soon as he was sure the coast was clear. The other left the bathroom and grabbed a random book from his locker before going back out to Erasa.

"Sorry for the wait."

"It's no problem." She assured him with a smile.

"So do you want to fly out stay on the ground?" He asked as he pulled out his capsule case. She gave him a confused look. "Well, I've got a jet copter and a hovercycle."

Her eyes lit up at hearing he had a hovercycle. "You have a hovercycle? They haven't even been released for sale yet."

"Just one of the perks of having Bulma Briefs as your godmother." He said nonchalantly.

Erasa froze in her tracks. "Y-y-you know _The_ Bulma Briefs? And you didn't tell me earlier?"

"I love my godmother, but people tend to treat my different when they learn my relation to her. I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention my relation to her to anyone else." Gohan requested.

"Of-of course, lips are sealed." She pantomimed twisting a key in a lock and throwing away the key.

Gohan smiled at her and handed her a helmet. She gave him a curious look when she noticed he didn't have another helmet with him. She was just about to question him about that when he put on a pair of predator sunglasses and pushed a hidden button causing a helmet to materialize on his head. "It's the latest in nano-tech." He answered the unasked question. Pulling the appropriate capsule out, he summoned forth the sleek looking machine. Erasa ran her hand along the polished fenders reverently as Gohan straddled the seat. She quickly pulled on her helmet and climbed behind Gohan as he fired up the cycle. Sliding her hands around his torso, Erasa was pleasantly shocked at the feel of Gohan's rock hard abs hidden under his shirt. She blushed as she tried to picture what he would look like without his shirt, or the rest of his clothes for that matter. She mentally scolded herself for her thoughts. She barely even knew him, she didn't even know if he was seeing anyone. Snuggling in closer to him, she just allowed herself to enjoy this moment while it lasted.

On the outskirts of the city, a charter bus was careening dangerously along a mountainous road. The police had fallen back in hopes that the criminals would slow down. Several news helicopters were filming the chase to the best of their ability while being held back by the police copters. The hostage situation was streaming live to televisions across the land. Suddenly a bright yellow jetcopter streaked in under the cover of the rocky terrain. The hostage takers quickly recovered from their shock and immediately opened fire on the small craft. Videl waited till she was directly over the bus before she set the autopilot and leapt the short distance to the roof of the speeding bus. She rolled to the side to avoid a spray of bullets that penetrated the roof where she had just landed. Using the momentum of her slide, she grabbed the rain gutter along the roof edge and swung herself down and through a window.

Luckily the gunmen had not quite recovered from their shock and she was able to disable the man who had been near the middle of the bus. With a shove, she sent that gunman stumbling toward his companion near the rear while using the first as a human shield. As the two gunmen crashed into each other, Videl grabbed a text book off a nearby seat and sent it flying into the face knocking him off his feet. Believing that both men were incapacitated, Videl turned to the driver when one of the kids shouted a warning.

"Look out!" Videl spun around just in time to see one of the gunmen leveling his rifle at her. Time seemed to slow down as she dove into a roll as the muzzle flashed three times before he exhausted his ammo. Videl took advantage of him needing to reload to sprint towards him and landing a knockout blow with her knee to the side of his head. Turning to the from of the bus, Videl's stomach sank as she spotted three round holes in the back of the driver's seat and the driver slumped over the steering wheel. Up ahead she could see that the road curved and saw nothing but sky past the quickly approaching guardrail. Videl knew that there was not near enough time for her to gain control of the bus and closed her eyes in anticipation for the coming disaster. 'I'm sorry, Erasa, Dad. I'm sorry I wasn't fast enough.'

Just feet from the guardrail the bus lurched to a sudden stop throwing everyone forward violently. Videl opened her eyes when she noticed that the bus was not falling off the cliff but was safely stopped still on the road. There, in front of the bus, was a young man that she guessed was about her age with spiky golden hair and teal eyes surrounded by a golden aura. He was easing the bus back from the edge of the cliff with effortless ease. Videl stared at the the young man, she knew he looked familiar, but from where? Then it struck her. Besides the hair and eye color, she was looking at….Gohan! She tried to exit the bus as fast as she could to confirm her suspicions, but before she could make it to the door, the young man lifted off the ground and flew away. Videl was gobsmacked, he actually flew! Before she could think further into the mysterious young hero, she heard the wailing of the approaching police sirens.

As the police cars screeched to a halt around the bus, Videl had only two thoughts: 'I am in some deep shit' and 'Who was that golden boy?'

 **I am so sorry for the delay on this story. Between school starting back up for my girls and an increase of deliveries at work, I have had very little time for writing. That combined with a bit of writer's block on the bus scene added up to a major delay on getting this out. I'm still not completely happy with how the bus fight turned out, but it is better that a few of the other drafts. Thank you for your continued patience and have a wonderful day.**


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